Keeping out of prison . . .

Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. Matthew 5:25

It is amazing how much energy and time you must use to attend to issues of your past. You want to move forward into the future and yet, you find yourself having to pay the cost for things long since gone, and long since forgotten.

This morning I had a conversation with a person who has a debt that has been long standing. It is keeping them from moving forward. They have had the money several times over and yet they have never made it a priority to pay. They keep waiting for that large sum, the wining of the lottery or some great gift to be able to make the payment. You might think that it is just wishful thinking, but it is actually a lot deeper than that. See it is a desire to pay back what was owed from funds that they did not have to work for or sacrifice for. Why? Because at this point they see it, like I have done also at times, as simply throwing money into a dry and empty pit. None of us will get an award if we pay what we owe. No one will ring a bell and pat us on the back for a good job done. Indeed, we often do not even have what we are paying for. It is long since gone, used and forgotten. Thus payment for it seems in our mind to be paying for nothing.

But that is not the case. Indeed we are paying for something. It is priceless (which does not mean it doesn't cost anything!). We are paying for our freedom from bondage.

Look at the passage. Notice your adversary is not getting ready to take you to court HE IS IN THE COURTROOM, at the clerks office, and filing the papers. The passage encourages you to work out a solution, to pay them, while you are still free. This was very real in those days for there was such a thing as being thrown into prison for debt you owed. Now, we don't go to prison because we owe money. At least not to a physical prison. What we do find ourselves in is a financial one. Our credit is lousy, and down right bad. We have a hard time giving to ministries and volunteering for charitable causes, and simply helping out family and friends, and any one God would so direct, because we just do not have the funds or the time. We are in prison to a job that we may hate, a place where we do not want to live, in a community which we have no connection to and couldn't start to have one since we are always having to be at work. We are imprisoned to the fear that we may not have enough to pay the light bill, much less the rent. We are scared that they might just take us to court and when they do, they will take the money directly from our checks . . . oh, . . . the debt PLUS attorney's fees.

We have no peace when we lie down, or if we do, it is because we don't truly know the danger we are in – not because we couldn't, but because we have chosen not to. It is too overwhelming. But then God's word says:

Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations. Proverbs 27:23-24

If you missed it, even the rich must know the condition of their finances. And our passage today says to run quickly and work out a solution, settle matters.

A man told me once that what made him decide to grow up was a basic understanding that he came to. The understanding: “The more responsible you are the more freedom you will have.” I would like to add “Amen.” And this truth is borne out in the passage. If you are responsible in settling your matters, then you will not be turned over the judge, then the officer, and then to prison.

So, … develop an action plan. Start by writing down all that you owe. To everyone. And then pray to God as to how to best approach it. Who to speak to. What plans for repayment to make. And then get to it. One way is to determine how much you can apply to all debt. Then taking the list you made, divide up the amount into monthly payments. When the lowest debt is paid, add that amount to the next highest. Do this on and on until you have paid them all off. If you do so you will be surprised at how willing your creditors may be to work with you. Especially if you pray that they will.

You are then walking according to God's word and as such you can speak to those dry bones His word! (see previous post “So you found some dry bones . . .”). Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. And I am sure you have heart if you know the truth, it will set you free.

Now you know the truth. . . . Get yourself free!

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