The answer is "A trillion dollars!" What's the question? If you said the national debt you are half right. It is not what the government owes; it is the amount of money Americans owe on installment loans. 

Now that's a lot of commas and zeros. It is also a lot of heartaches and pain. I've talked to people who owe as much as Ten to Twenty thousand dollars. Their debt is controlling their lives and choking them to death. 

The bookkeeper of a Christian organization recently resigned after confessing embezzling over Twenty thousand dollars during a two-year period. She is not a corrupt tele-evangelist. She is a loving mother and devoted wife. Why would she do this? She cited financial pressure because of credit card debt in her letter of resignation. She may face jail time for her crime. 

There aren't any debtor's prisons like there were in Bible times (Matthew 18:30) anymore, right? Wrong! Today they are not made of stone and iron; they are made of plastic. 

Are you in a plastic prison? The average American carries a $3900.00 balance on their Credit Cards. Their "minimum payment" for that balance is $81.46. If they continue to pay their minimum payment, and do not purchase anything else with the card, they will spend the next 7.6 years repaying the debt. They will be "debt free" after 7.6 years of bondage, paying the jailer $3529.86 in interest. 

There are no "get out of jail free cards" in real life! You'll have to work at it, but I can show you how to get out early for "good behavior" reducing your sentence by 2/3's to 2.5 years. This plan will reduce your interest to $1038.19 and give you a nest egg of $9342.35 when your parole ends. 

Good Behavior To reduce your sentence, getting out of your plastic prison early you must follow these principles of good behavior: 

#1 Don't be a repeat offender. Put your credit cards in a safety deposit box and forget you have them. Wait a minute; I know what your saying: "I need them for emergencies." Your credit card is not saving you from emergencies; it is creating them. If you cannot afford to pay cash for a purchase, you cannot afford it. Do not create any new credit card debt. 

#2 Lower your bank charges. There are several ways to reduce your interest and bank fees. Some credit card companies will lower your rates if you ask them to. One of my cards is at a 19.15% variable rate. The representative told me she could lower it to a 17.8 fixed rate if I wanted her to. (I didn't bother since I'm debt free and don't carry a balance.) 

You may find lower rates by shopping around. Some credit card companies want your business enough that they offer to transfer your balances from existing cards and lower your interest rate. The rate will probably increase after the first year, but only after a substantial savings. 

Are you paying an annual fee on your card? You may not have to. Several years ago I called to cancel a credit card because they charged me a $45.00 annual fee that I didn't want to pay. The representative asked me to keep the card and they wouldn't charge me the fee anymore. I agreed, now I have the card without the fee. 

Credit Card companies charge substantial fees for late payments and for exceeding your credit limit. These charges add up and force you into a more perilous position. Avoid these extra fees by staying below your limit and paying your bill on time. 

#3 Double your payment. If you will pay $164.61 a month, you will pay the balance off in 2.5 years. How will you come up with the extra money? I don't know, figure it out, collect aluminum cans, do something, but double your payments. By doubling your payments you can get out of debt in a third of the time. If you reduce your interest rates you can pay it off even sooner. 

You may have several credit cards with a balance. If you do, pay the minimum payment on those with the largest balance and apply the extra money to the card with the lowest balance. 

Rules of Parole Getting out of debt is the beginning of a new lifestyle. But don't consider yourself "rehabilitated" just yet. Now that you've paid off the credit card, you are on parole. Here are some rules to keep you out of jail. 

#1 Continue to pay $164.61 to an investment account. Use your new found discipline to create a tidy little nest egg. If you get 8% interest on the account, you will have $9342.35 available when the full sentence of 7.6 years is up. 

#2 Use your Credit card responsibly. Pay off the balance when the bills arrive. This gives you free use of money for between 25 and 45 days. Your credit card is a wonderful servant but a terrible master. 

#3 Don't create any debt that does not have a corresponding equity. Purchasing a home is an investment, not a debt. Do not finance a car for more than its resale value. You should never owe more on a car than it is worth. 

Free at last With this plan you will enter full financial freedom with a small $9342.35 in cash after only paying $7583.28 more. What made the $1759.07 difference? Compound interest, that's what. You will pay the interest for the first 2.5 years; you will receive the interest for the next 5.1 years. 

I hope you can find the joy and satisfaction that comes from financial freedom. It is biblical. Romans 13:8a says: "Let no debt remain outstanding." 

Be careful with your freedom, don't take it for granted. Do you like snakes? Not Me, I hate them! Some people like them enough to keep them as pets in their home. They put a python in a terrarium and call it a pet, but it remains a dangerous reptile with the ability to squeeze the life out of the owner. 

Your credit card is a python in your pocket. Though you may domesticate it, it remains potentially dangerous. It will put a financial squeeze on you if you fall back into destructive spending patterns.