Read: 2 Corinthians 9:6  |

What is your FICO Score?

In the business world, FICO stands for Fair Isaac Corporation. FICO is a mathematical model, which takes into account five areas to determine credit risk:
1) Payment history up to 81 months (nearly 7 years)
2) Current level of indebtedness
3) Types of credit used
4) Length of credit history
5) New credit

A high score indicates good credit and the borrower is eligible for low interest rates. A low score means that credit issues exist and the borrower will need to pay higher interest rates to offset the credit risk. In essence, a low FICO score limits our financial freedom and closes the door to some opportunities.

Whether we realize it or not, each time we request a loan, make a payment or seemingly take our credit card out of our wallet, the agencies record the event in their systems. Pay on time, we are green and recorded as a positive; pay late and it is red-flagged and drops our FICO score; miss multiple payments and our FICO score plummets.

To get the report, simply logon to www.annualcreditreport.com and request the report from one or more of the three Credit Agencies: Experian, Equifax and Transunion. After selection and entry of personal information, a personalized summary/detail report is available online. Please note, Kleenex are not provided!

Spiritually, we also must also watch our FICO Score. In the spiritual world, FICO stands for Faithful In Consistent Offerings. Our personal FICO score and our spiritual FICO score are inter-related. A low financial FICO score can trigger an inconsistent spiritual FICO as well. After all, it is hard to be a cheerful giver when debt collectors start calling our cell phone numbers.

To fix a low spiritual FICO score:

1.Confess to the 3 Credit Sources – God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit the Helper. He is waiting on our call and we know the number. Call Him up! After the conversation and confession, strive to develop a consistent history of free will giving back to God to eliminate the red flags on our account.

2.Eliminate debt – Debt can be an anchor to our joy. It used to be we wanted to live as good as our neighbor – “the Jones”. Now we want to live as good as the TV Reality stars, or this rap artist or that athlete. Over time, we have developed an “I” disorder. “I” want this; “I” want that; “I” cannot do without it! The “I” disorder improperly focuses on us and not Him. Consequently, we carry too much credit card debt because of this “I” disorder. Reduce the credit cards to one or two and pay them off.

3.Learn portion control – One of the first things taught in any diet is portion control. Learn to curb the diet for new things by understanding the principle of “enoughness” in the Bible. When the children of Israel were with Moses in the desert, God provided enough food to feed all of them during their journey. He even ensured they did not hoard. It was enough! When Jesus had only five loaves of bread and two fish to feed the 5,000, He had enough. Time and time again, God teaches us the principle of “enoughness” but we miss it!

Instead, we feel like we do not have enough food, enough clothes, enough shoes, enough rims, enough hair, enough rings or even enough eyelashes! Find a level of enough that can by-pass splurge purchases and still allow us to be consistent in our giving. Learn to train our kids that enough is enough so they can avoid all the name brand living prevalent in our society.

A low FICO score indicates that debt has shackled and stunted growth. Follow the three-step process to improve the FICO scores, gain financial freedom, and receive God’s greater blessings of a cheerful giver.

Questions:
1.Discover –
a. Find out your FICO Score by going to www.annualcreditreport.com

2.Develop –
a. Does your FICO score impact your spiritual FICO Score negatively or positively?
b. Does your giving decrease when money is tight or do you make the adjustment in other areas?

3.Demonstrate –
a. Living on enough is a key principle taught in the Bible. How well does your lifestyle reflect living on enough?
b. Develop and evaluate your budget to and measure it against the principle of enough and elimination of debt.