I was talking with a friend the other day about the days ahead. I have had a strong, strong sense that we should do whatever it takes to get out of debt. He mentioned that he had been wrestling with paying off one of his credit cards.
He had the money to pay it, but the credit card was 0% interest and the money if the bank was gaining 1% interest. Therefore there was a small “profit” to keeping the money in the bank and not paying off the card until the 0% interest rate expired. My encouragement was to get the credit card paid off…immediately (and he did while we were actually talking on the phone).
Later I realized how different God’s math is than man’s. And it’s something the Lord keeps reaffirming to me.
His math is simply not ours:
Man sees 0% interest credit cards as gain. God sees a burden of debt as subtraction.
Man sees generosity as subtraction. God sees generosity as multiplication.
Man sees tithing as subtraction. God sees tithing as addition.
Man sees caring many years for your elderly family/children at home as subtraction. God sees sacrificial love as subtraction of self and multiplication of love.
Man sees greed as addition. God sees greed as subtraction.
Man sees joy as a simple number. God sees joy as an exponential factor.
