DEBT by Mrs. Geo. A. Irwin

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 31, 1900

DEBT

By Mrs. Geo. A. Irwin

MRS. GEO. A. IRWIN.

“Owe no man anything, but to love one another,” should be rigidly adhered to by every one who wishes domestic affairs to run smoothly. There is nothing that will more greatly militate against the truth than to have its adherents run into debt, and fail to meet their obligations; and, my dear sister, there is nothing that will so quickly and thoroughly discourage your husband as to have you make it impossible for him to stand clear of any such obligation. We know that, in the majority of cases, the power to keep out of debt lies largely with the wife. Debt should be shunned as a deadly enemy.

There is an old saying that we must cut our garment according to our cloth. We all know the limit of our resources, and should plan accordingly. Many receive a regular salary, but do not gauge their outlay by their income; and little by little they find themselves going deeper and deeper into debt, and they do not see how they are ever to get out. Such a man has no heart for anything.

Everyone can live within his income, and it is his Christian duty to do so. In this, as in everything else, the trouble lies in the little things. If we take care of the nickles, the dollars will take care of themselves. How many nickles and dimes go for little nothings! If we were to watch the very smallest items, we should find that, instead of always being behind, we should have a little surplus at the end of the week,—perhaps only a few cents; but at the end of the year it would amount to dollars, and be a nice little sum to deposit, and add to, for another year. When a beginning is made, it is surprising to find how easy and interesting it is to enlarge the amount.

In many homes there is a fair degree of prosperity, and the husband places in the hands of the wife an abundance for all the domestic expenses; but no thought is given to a time when fortune may change, and shut off entirely the usual income, or reduce it to half its proportions. The example of one young housewife is worthy of imitation by all:—

“A prosperous and wealthy young man was pleasantly settled in life. For several years everything went smoothly in his business, but hard times at last overtook him. He had lived beyond his income; and when the pressure came, he could not meet his obligations, and he was bankrupt. With a sad heart he was compelled to tell the news to his wife, and to inform her that their home would have to be sold to meet the demands of the creditors. His wife tried to cheer him with the thought that possibly his situation was not so bad as he thought, and that something might yet turn in his favor. But he knew too well his financial standing to hope for this.

“In his great despondency his wife suggested to him that if he would read a chapter in the Bible, as it had been some time since he had read in it, perhaps he might find something there which would afford him relief. She took down the family Bible, placed it in his lap, and sat down beside him. He took it up with indifference, and it fell open of its own accord; and as it opened, a five-dollar bill caught his eye. She suggested that he look and see if there were not others; and to his surprise, he found them, leaf after leaf, until a thousand of them greeted his astonished vision. It was a great mystery to him how five thousand dollars could get into that Bible. The wife soon solved the mystery, by telling him that, by her economy, she had laid aside monthly a certain sum from the generous amount he had furnished her for expenses, because she thought that possibly a rainy day might come, and that she could quietly prepare for it; and so she saved her husband from financial ruin.”

We should always have some money on hand in case of sickness or death, or from which to respond to any specially urgent call for help in the cause of God. “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.” Not that we are to accumulate wealth. We may never have much of this world's goods, and should not wish much; but the blessing of the Lord upon the little we have will make it go a long way, and will be sufficient to supply the actual needs for comfort.

Let us seek the Lord for wisdom in the distribution of our means. Our Heavenly Father is abundant in resources. He is not pleased to have his children suffer from poverty or from any other cause. “Our God is a tender, merciful Father. His service should not be looked upon as a heart-saddening, distressing exercise. It should be a pleasure to worship the Lord, and to take part in his work. God would not have his children, for whom so great salvation has been provided, act as if he were a hard, exacting taskmaster. He is their best friend; and when they worship him, he expects to be with them, to bless and comfort them, filling their hearts with joy and love. The Lord desires his children to take comfort in his service, and to find more pleasure than hardship in his work. He desires that those who come to worship him shall carry away with them precious thoughts of his care and love, that they may be cheered in all the employments of daily life, that they may have grace to deal honestly and faithfully in all things.”