A Prayer About Debt

A lot of people can relate to having debt. After all, debt is one of many common financial problems that people encounter. While some people have difficulty making ends meet, some are in even more difficult situations because they don’t have a choice but to borrow money. The good thing is that the Bible doesn’t just give us practical wisdom in how we ought to handle our finances; it also gives us some specific wisdom regarding debt.

Father in heaven, I thank You because all wisdom comes from You. You are self-sufficient, and everything comes from You alone. I pray for the wisdom that I need so that I may handle my finances well and never go into debt. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

What does the Bible say about debt?

If you are a Christian, the fear of debt will likely not be much of a problem for you. Besides the fact that you believe God is faithful in providing, the Bible also gives us some practical wisdom regarding borrowing money. (Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8) tells us that we are to owe no one anything but to love others in order to fulfill the law. The passage tells us that it is better to be the one serving, loving, and giving to others rather than one who owes others anything.

In (The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth. Psalm 37:21), we can also see that God is not that pleased when it comes to debt, especially if we delay paying back what we borrow, which often happens. Sometimes we fail to pay a loan back and therefore break our word in what we have promised our lender, or we may forget to pay back a loan, which still amounts to breaking our word.

It is important to note that the Bible does not explicitly say that debt is a sin or that we should never go into debt. However, we can see from the Bible that it is not usually a wise thing to do. Even among Christians, it is still not practical to go into debt. In fact, it could even be a seed of potential, unnecessary conflict whenever a Christian borrower is not able to pay back the money or forgets to pay the money as he or she has promised. The Bible instead encourages us to give instead of lending. 

Whenever a Christian borrows money, that means he or she is in need. It could be that the majority of their income goes to the important expenses of their family, and therefore they may lack the money to even buy food. In that case, as Christians ought to love their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, the most Christlike thing to do is to bless the person with the amount they are borrowing instead of lending it to them or, even worse, tacking on an interest rate. Jesus commanded us in (A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:34-35) to love another, for that is how the world will know that we are His disciples. How unpleasant it would be to see Christians who claim to love one another fighting over charging interest or demanding repayment for what others have borrowed. Also, in 1 John 4:7-12, it is written that we are to love one another because love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows Him.

The Bible calls us to be generous instead, as written in 2 Corinthians 8:1-15. Whatever blessings or resources God has given us, it is not so that we can hoard them but instead use them to give generously to our fellow brothers and sisters who are in need. We are to be a channel of blessing to other people. God gave us seeds, as written in 2 Corinthians 9:10 so that we can also sow them by giving generously to others. Generosity is and should be part of our lives as Christians.

Also, another practical wisdom as to why we should be careful with debt is when (The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7) tells us that those who are in debt are, in a sense, slaves of their lenders. That does not mean that when a person borrows money from a person, he or she becomes the property of the lender and becomes a slave. But we become slaves in the sense that whoever lends money to us has some kind of influence over us. For example, let’s say we borrowed money from someone, and that lender asks us for a favor. In this case, it is hard to say “no,” even if we already have a lot on our plate, because we know that the person once did us a favor by lending us money. Though there is nothing inherently wrong with the situation, it could lead to many possible ruinous scenarios. So, it is wise to keep out of debt.

Father in heaven, give me the grace to apply Your wisdom regarding finances. Help me never to be the borrower but always the one who blesses other people. Use me as a channel of blessing to others and not just the recipient of blessings. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

How can we pray regarding our debts?

You can pray for your debts by simply praying you would get out of them immediately; this is where each person’s prayer varies. However, the guiding principle here is that you pray for the means to avoid debt, whether that is through finding an extra stream of income to pay off the debt slowly or being able to sell a certain kind of property to pay off your debt.

Regardless of how you try to pay your debt, there is one particular prayer that you can pray—asking God for wisdom. (But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. Deuteronomy 8:18) states that our power to generate or produce wealth, whether through business, salary, or other means, comes from God alone. As you pray to God to be able to pay off your debts, pray and ask God for the wisdom to produce the wealth you need to do this.

When you pray to God regarding your debts, you come to Him humbly. You pray to God because You need His help, and you cannot pay your debts on your own. Since God was able to pay our ultimate debt in sin by giving His Son Jesus as the propitiation of our sins, surely He can help us with paying our debts, whether that is through giving us the wisdom to generate the money we need to pay or through a miraculous provision. In 1 Peter 5:6-7, it is written that we are to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God. That means we must not take on our debt problem alone but humble ourselves by casting to God our cares and burdens.

Heavenly Father, give me the grace and wisdom to pay off my debts as quickly as possible and be financially free. I pray for a salary increase in my work. Give me the strength and grace I need to be excellent in my work and deserving of a salary increase. Give me also the wisdom to manage the side hustle I am working on so that I will have an extra stream of income to pay off my debts quickly. May these endeavors bear fruit so I will be able to pay back all the money I owe. As I do this, use me as a channel of blessing to others who are also in debt by blessing them so that they can quickly pay off what they owe. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

As you strive to pay off your debts, know you are not alone; God is with you. As you diligently work hard to be financially free, know that your hard work will pay off. In Proverbs 10:4, it is written that the hand of the diligent makes them rich, but those who are slack in hand have only poverty. In (The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat. Proverbs 13:4), it is also written that the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.