Have You Done Your Mid-Year Money Check?

Have you been avoiding your numbers because you're afraid of what you're going to see? You know that quiet way to that stress that follows you all around even when you don't look at it?Well, friend, if you're tired of carrying that pressure but don't know how to face it without spiraling out of control, today I'm going to walk you through this together, step by step and I'm going to give you a plan to make this work for your finances. Going to be a great show today. Hey friend. Ralph Estep Jr. Here.Welcome to Financially Confident Christian where every day we work to break that cycle of financial shame and and help you live in confidence. And now that we're in the month of May, we got to start thinking about a mid year debt check in.But for so many of us, we feel overwhelmed or even ashamed. Which leads me to today's listener question. Got this one the other day in the voicemail, in the email. Excuse me Ralph.With all the mid year check ins and money conversations that come up in May, I know I should look at my full debt picture but I'm scared to face it. Let me just take a break second and say you're not alone. A lot of people don't like to face this, but let me continue.Part of me feels like if I don't add it all up, it won't hit as hard. At the same time, the weight of it is already there, quietly stressing me out.I don't want to keep avoiding it, especially right now when I know it matters. So Ralph, how do I face my numbers without spiraling and take the next right step? What a great question. And first of all, you're not alone in this.You are definitely not the only person that is deals with this. So I want to start right here. Avoiding the numbers doesn't remove the weight. A lot of people think and listen. I've done this myself.There were seasons of my life where I didn't even look at my bank account because I did not want to know. But it doesn't remove the weight. You're still carrying that weight with you all the time. It just hides it. And for so many of us.And I've seen this in my practice, I've seen this in my own life. That hidden weight is often heavier than the truth itself. So today we're not going to do this with pressure though.I'm going to show you how to do this with peace. If you listen to my show, you know I believe in clarity. I'm all about Knowing what's going on, I think you can navigate that better.Because clarity removes fear. And when we can be take small, honest steps. That's what this show is all about, small, honest steps to break the financial shame.Now, you've asked a very intentional question and I want to give you an intentional answer. So before we even start to answer the question, we've got to put ourselves in the right mind frame.You've got to put yourself in a calm environment before you even start. And this matters more than you think. This isn't the time to do it when you're rushed.This is not the thing to do late at night and definitely not to do it in a moment of stress. Maybe you just got a bill and you feel this weight, like, oh man, another bill. How am I ever going to get out, out from under this?This is not the time to do that. You've got to be intentional in this. Pick a quiet time, sit down, take in that breath, pray first. Because this isn't about walking into judgment.A lot of people think, well, if I really embrace this mid year check in, I look at where my debts are, I'm walking into the judgment. Hey, listen, we're all going to walk into judgment someday. But that's not what this is. This is all about stepping into clarity.So calm your mind, pull the right time out, take that deep breath, pray about it. And then once you're ready, here's what I want you to do. I want you to list your debts. No commentary, not, oh, how did I do this?Oh, I can't believe this. This is the key to thing. I want you to just list these things.You're going to write down the name of the creditor, you're going to write down the balance, and you're going to write down the minimum payment. Just three columns. The creditor, the balance and the minimum payment. That's it. This isn't a time for labels. No, I can't believe I did this.No, no shame statements. Oh, I'm back in debt again. No, you're just gathering information at this point. You're not assigning blame, you're gathering information.So that's the second thing you do once you've gathered that information. And maybe this is a mountain you're looking at. Maybe you're looking at this thing and like Ralph, this thing is big. It's cut a lot of weight to it.I just want you to focus on one number, not the total. If you're like me, that total can feel overwhelming. I remember a season in My life, the kids were young.My wife and I, we had racked up some credit card debt. And that total, when I looked at it, it was overwhelming. I thought, man, this is nearly what I make in six months working.And for a while, I got to be honest with you, I stayed focused on that mountain. But I don't want you to live that same life that I lived. So instead of fixating on that full amount, I just want you to focus on the one next step.Ask yourself this, what is one debt? And this is why I had you make that list. What is one debt I can begin to make progress on? Just pull one of those out of there.What's one payment that I can increase even slightly? Because the key here is you want to build in that progress. And you're never going to see progress if you see this mountain in front of you.You're just going to stay fixated on the mountain. But when you pull one little piece, that first, first step, it starts with just one decision. So that's what I want you to do.I want you to create a simple, sustainable plan. This isn't the time to get heroic. This isn't a time to get, you know, aggressive. Not something unrealistic, just something sustainable.Now, for you, that might look like, hey, I'm going to add $25 extra to one payment this week. You might be saying, rob, that's not much. Well, guess what? That's more than you did last week. Or maybe choosing a payoff order.We've talked about the different ways to do that. The snowball or the avalanche. Maybe setting one monthly check in time where you're going to go look at this every month.I don't think this is something you should go look at every day. You'll drive yourself crazy. But maybe you say, look on the 1st of every month or the 10th of every month, I'm going to go pull this list.I'm going to make a list again, and I'm going to see where I'm at. Because when you commit to consistency, it will beat intensity every day. Because the goal is not to sprint, it's to stay steady.And in the end, here's the big takeaway for today. You've got to replace shame with truth.So let's take a minute, talk about the emotional side of this, because shame is going to try to speak to you during this. It's going to say things like, you should be further along, or maybe you mess this up, or it'll whisper you're behind, but that's not the truth.Here's the truth. You're facing it now. Maybe you haven't ever faced it before. Maybe you've never made that list. Maybe you've never made that commitment.But right now, friend, you are facing it. You're taking that step. You're not stuck anymore. And that right there matters more than where you've been. Because, listen, we've all been somewhere.But where are you going? So here's my encouragement for today. Facing the truth is the first step towards freedom. Face that truth. Take that first step.Well, here's your win for today. I want you to go make that list and I want you to write down one debt. Again, not all of them, just one. Start there.Because starting small is still starting. Just start. Which leads me to today's Bible verse. As you know, this show is all about faith and finance. And I always want to tie it back to scripture.And today we go to second Timothy, chapter one, verse seven. And I love this one. This is another one of those. Put it on the refrigerator again. 2Nd Timothy 1:7.For the spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self discipline. I don't know about you. When I read that, I kind of feel strong power, love, self discipline.And the best part is that's the spirit that God's already given us. Because God equips you not with fear.That's the evil one speaking, but God equips you with strength and discipline that you need to face your situation and take steps forward, steady steps forward. Well, how about we pray together right now, Heavenly Father, right now, I lift up my friend who feels the weight of what they've been avoiding.So hard to break free of that weight. And, Lord, you see their fear, you see the pressure that they're carrying, and you see their desire to just move forward.So right now, at this very moment, Lord, I ask that you replace fear with courage and shame with grace. Give them peace as they face their numbers, Lord. It might be really hard for them, but give them peace as they face those numbers.Give them clarity as they make wise decisions.But most of all, Lord, give them strength to take one simple step today and remind us all we are not defined by our debts, but by your love and your purpose in our lives. So, Lord, right now, we ask that you would just walk with us in this process. And I ask this in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. Friend, hear me on this.You don't have to solve everything today. You're not going to solve everything today. Spoiler alert. You just have to start today.And I want to encourage you right now, don't keep carrying this on your own. The things that we talk about on this show are hard things. Sometimes take a minute and say it out loud.And if you feel like it, I would love to hear what you're going through right now. We've got a way for you to leave us a voicemail message.You can actually go click on this website, go to financiallyconfidentchristian.com/voicemail and leave me a message. It doesn't have to be perfect. I don't want it to be perfect. I just want to hear from you. I love hearing from our listeners. Guess what?I've got an actual listener voicemail that we're going to cover on tomorrow's show. Again, it doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to be honest because I truly want to hear from you.And your message, believe it or not, might be the exact message that someone else needs to hear right alongside you. So go to financiallyconfidentchristian.com/voicemail and share what's going on in your life. So thank you so much for joining me today.As I always say, stay financially savvy. May God bless you and make sure you join us on tomorrow's show. Have a great day today.