Who am I? Well, I am a regular person just like you. After years of being financially irresponsible, I had a serious wake up call! In August 2016, my father passed away.  At the time, I was working full-time and living at home. This means I had employee benefits and a salary with little expenses.

At this time, I already had a basic foundation for budgeting, as I was introduced to a method of money management nearly ten years prior. Yet and still I found myself in a uncomfortable situation, my father just passed away and he was the bread winner of my family.

I struggled to pay for a airline ticket to travel to his funeral. I didn’t have to be in that situation. I chose to be in that situation. You may be wondering, ‘how did you choose that situation?’ Because I failed to prepare for life’s circumstances, by default, I chose to be unprepared and chose the consequences of my poor choices. I realized that I had to do something. I could no longer turn to Daddy for money because Daddy would no longer be there. I needed a plan. I needed to get back to the basics of budgeting and to start saving money for a rainy day. I would like to tell you in that moment everything changed for the better. It didn’t.

I continued living in a one-parent household at the age of 30, with little responsibility. Take heart things get better, but before they did, I ended up taking out a loan for a significant amount of money in an attempt to move. Wrong move, but I did it anyway! I accepted the money and I still didn’t move.

The next year, I was able to get a summer position that almost doubled my salary for a six-week period. It was during that time, I was able to save $5,000. I had saved $5,000 but I still had that loan I told you about, and some credit card debt.

Time is rolling by, but it was during this time that I revisited a financial course. It was then, that God lit a fire under me to get out of debt. I am a Christian and the Bible talks about the borrower being slave to the lender (see Proverbs 22:7). It was during this time that I had a revelation: When I am in debt, I give someone the power or authority to be my legal master. How can I serve God if someone else is my master? That is reserved for Him. I know it’s deep but it is true. I paid off my credit card debt and the loan I held. On November 15, 2017, I was set free from the bonds of debt okay! I paid off a 3-year loan in a little over a year saving myself a ton of interest. I continued to save for my future, remember I already had some money saved for emergencies and I was debt-free once again (we will get into that later).

There were some strategies that I implemented and I was able to save my $10,000 for the first time ever early in 2018! Later that year in the summer 2018, I was able to move into my first apartment, on my own and without a roommate. It was only 2 years prior that I couldn’t afford a ticket to travel to my father’s funeral!

If it sounds like a lot, it is. God has been faithful throughout my process. I would not be where I am if it weren’t for Him, so yes He gets the glory and frequent shout-outs. So now you know my story and it is still being written. Let me know your story. What are your financial goals? What do you expect to gain from reading this blog? Let’s achieve our goals together! Please keep it positive and honest. Talk to you soon.

Gelayne