There is hope. There is a solution.

If you are financially trapped, we are here to help.  We know that financial burdens can distract you from living a comfortable life in both the materialistic and the spiritual world.

While it is our primary focus to coach you to resolve your financial hardships, we are keenly aware that your spiritual life is gravely affected as well.  Financial issues tend to affect individuals emotionally, mentally, and physically. Experts tell us that the anxiety from financial worries can create irregular sleeping patterns, poor eating habits, and can even damage relationships.

Our main goal is to work with you to help resolve your financial burden. Ideally, then you can return your focus back to the things that are truly important in life such as family, friends,  and your own serenity.

Our services offer financial relief programs, so you can refocus your attention to a more simple life of joy and service that God intended for all of us. The Peace that Passes all understanding is available to everyone who chooses to create a different outcome.

How Can We Help?

The first step in regaining control of your financial situation is education. Asking the right questions will lead you to the path of financial wisdom and spiritual progress. Our services include one-on-one counseling; we design a strategic plan of action, unique to your situation and coach you through the entire process.

Your Options

Debt Consolidation:

• Reduce interest rates
• Avoid over limit and late fees
• Enjoy one convenient monthly payment

Debt Settlement:

• Reduce  monthly payments
• Negotiate for less than you owe
• Avoid Bankruptcy, in some cases
• Become a saver

These solutions will drastically simplify your financial life by removing the burden and bringing you closer to Him. Depending on your current financial situation, Trinity Financial Mission can arrange lower monthly payments with your creditors. In most cases, you are able to get out of debt dramatically faster, while reducing your monthly payment. Our Coaches can help you work through these issues and find simplicity in your financial life.

Choose one payment date, make one monthly payment, and free yourself from the bondage of debt.

Take the first step in finding the financial wisdom. According to His plan.. Contact one of our enrollment agents today for a free and no obligation consultation.

I was able to contact Experian & Trans Union and speak to a live person. They helped me file the necessary information, and said I would receive a letter within 10 days. EquiFax, only has an automated number which wants to charge $39.95 a month for their protection service.
I have not contacted the number from the credit report that I received last month (Just by chance I ordered a Free report which came from EquiFax). While the credit report does not show the Target card, or any other card I don’t know about, I still want to call and file the fraud report to require contacting me before issuing any new cards.
I hope this helps you and your readers, and again thanks for the Capital One card.

Please fill out the Christian debt information request form on the right to request more information about our Christian debt programs.

Car Rental
1. Since car rental rates can vary greatly, shop around for the best basic rates. Ask about any additional charges (extra driver, gas, drop-off fees) and special offers.
2. Rental car companies offer various insurance and waiver options. Check with your automobile insurance agent and credit card company in advance to avoid duplicating any coverage you may already have.

New Cars
1. You can save thousands of dollars over the lifetime of a car by selecting a model that combines a low purchase price with low financing, insurance, gasoline, maintenance, and repair costs. Ask your local librarian for new car guides that contain this information.
2. Having selected a model, you can save hundreds of dollars by comparison shopping. Call at least five dealers for price quotes and let each know that you are calling others.
3. Remember there is no “cooling off” period on new car sales. Once you have signed a contract, you are obligated to buy the car.

Used Cars
1. Before buying any used car:
* Compare the seller’s asking price with the average retail price in a “bluebook” or other guide to car prices found at many libraries, banks, and credit unions.
* Have a mechanic you trust check the car, especially if the car is sold “as is.”
2. Consider purchasing a used car from an individual you know and trust. They are more likely than other sellers to charge a lower price and point out any problems with the car.

Auto Leasing
1. Don’t decide to lease a car just because the payments are lower than on a traditional auto loan. The leasing payments may be lower because you don’t own the car at the end of the lease.
2. Leasing a car is very complicated. When shopping, consider the price of the car (known as the capitalized cost), your trade-in allowance, any down payment, monthly payments, various fees (excess mileage, excess “wear and tear,” end-of- lease), and the cost of buying the car at the end of the lease. Keys to Vehicle Leasing: A Consumer Guide, published by the Federal Reserve Board and Federal Trade Commission, is a valuable source of information about auto leasing.

Gasoline
1. You can save hundreds of dollars a year by comparing prices at different stations, pumping gas yourself, and using the lowest-octane called for in your owner’s manual.
2. You can save up to $100 a year on gas by keeping your engine tuned and your tires inflated to their proper pressure.

Car Repairs
1. Consumers lose billions of dollars each year on unneeded or poorly done car repairs. The most important step that you can take to save money on these repairs is to find a skilled, honest mechanic. Before you need repairs, look for a mechanic who: * is certified and well established
* has done good work for someone you know; and
* communicates well about repair options and costs
Auto Insurance
1. You can save several hundred dollars a year by purchasing auto insurance from a licensed, low-price insurer. Call your state insurance department for a publication showing typical prices charged by different companies. Then call at least four of the lowest-priced, licensed insurers to learn what they would charge you for the same coverage.
2. Talk to your agent or insurer about raising your deductibles on collision and comprehensive coverages to at least $500 or, if you have an old car, dropping these coverages altogether. Taking these steps can save you hundreds of dollars a year.
3. Make certain that your new policy is in effect before dropping your old one.

Homeowner/Renter Insurance
1. You can save several hundred dollars a year on homeowner insurance and up to $50 a year on renter insurance by purchasing insurance from a low-price, licensed insurer. Ask your state insurance department for a publication showing typical prices charged by different licensed companies. Then call at least four of the lowest priced insurers to learn what they would charge you. If such a publication is not available, it is even more important to call at least four insurers for price quotes.
2. Make certain you purchase enough coverage to replace the house and its contents. “Replacement” on the house means rebuilding to its current condition.
3. Make certain your new policy is in effect before dropping your old one.

Life Insurance
1. If you want insurance protection only, and not a savings and investment product, buy a term life insurance policy.
2. If you want to buy a whole life, universal life, or other cash value policy, plan to hold it for at least 15 years. Canceling these policies after only a few years can more than double your life insurance costs.
3. Check your public library for information about the financial soundness of insurance companies and the prices they charge. The July 1998 issue of Consumer Reports is a valuable source of information about a number of insurers.
Checking
1. You can save more than $100 a year in fees by selecting a checking account with a low (or no) minimum balance requirement that you can, and do, meet. Request a list of these and other fees that are charged on these accounts.
2. Banking institutions often will drop or lower checking fees if paychecks are directly deposited by your employer. Direct deposit offers the additional advantages of convenience, security, and immediate access to your money.

Savings And Investment Products
1. Before opening a savings or investment account with a bank or other financial institution, find out whether the account is insured by the federal government (FDIC or NCUA). An increasing number of products offered by these institutions, including mutual stock funds and annuities, are not insured.
2. To earn the highest return on savings (annual percentage yield) with little or no risk, consider certificates of deposit (CDs) and treasury bills or notes.
3. Once you select a type of savings or investment product, compare rates and fees offered by different institutions. These rates can vary a lot and, over time, can significantly affect interest earnings.

Credit Cards
1. You can save as much as a thousand dollars or more each year in lower credit card interest charges by paying off your entire bill each month.
2. If you are unable to pay off a large balance, pay as much as you can and switch to a credit card with a low annual percentage rate (APR). For a modest fee, RAM Research Corp. (800-344-7714) will send you a list of low-rate cards. You can obtain a list of low-rate cards by accessing ” www.ramresearch.com ” on the Internet.
3. You can reduce credit card fees, which may add up to more than $100 a year, by getting rid of all but one or two cards, and by avoiding late payment and over-the-credit limit fees.

Auto Loans
1. If you have significant savings earning a low interest rate, consider making a large down payment or even paying for the car in cash. This could save you as much as several thousand dollars in finance charges.
2. You can save as much as hundreds of dollars in finance charges by shopping for the cheapest loan. Contact several banks, your credit union, and the auto manufacturer’s own finance company.

First Mortgage Loans
1. Although your monthly payment may be higher, you can save tens of thousands of dollars in interest charges by shopping for the shortest-term mortgage you can afford. On a $100,000 fixed-rate loan at 8% annual percentage rate (APR), for example, you will pay $90,000 less in interest on a l 5-year mortgage than on a 30-year mortgage.
2. You can save thousands of dollars in interest charges by shopping for the lowest-rate mortgage with the fewest points. On a 15-year, $100,000 fixed-rate mortgage, just lowering the APR from 8.5% to 8.0% can save you more than $5,000 in interest charges. On this mortgage, paying two points instead of three would save you an additional $1,000.
3. If your local newspaper does not periodically run mortgage rate surveys, call at least six lenders for information about their rates (APRs), points, and fees. Then ask an accountant to compute precisely how much each mortgage option will cost and its tax implications.
4. Be aware that the interest rate on most adjustable rate mortgage loans (ARMs) can vary a great deal over the lifetime of the mortgage. An increase of several percentage points might raise payments by hundreds of dollars per month.

Mortgage Refinancing
1. Consider refinancing your mortgage if you can get a rate that is at least one percentage point lower than your existing mortgage rate and plan to keep the new mortgage for several years or more. Ask an accountant to calculate precisely how much your new mortgage (including up-front fees) will cost and whether, in the long run, it will cost less than your current mortgage.

Home Equity Loans
1. Be cautious in taking out home equity loans. These loans reduce the equity that you have built up in your home. If you are unable to make payments, you could lose your home.
2. Compare home equity loans offered by at least four banking institutions. In comparing these loans, consider not only the annual percentage rate (APR) but also points, closing costs, other fees, and the index for any variable rate changes.
Home Purchase
1. You can often negotiate a lower sale price by employing a buyer broker who works for you not the seller. If the buyer broker or the broker’s firm also lists properties, there may be a conflict of interest, so ask them to tell you if they are showing you a property that they have listed.
2. Do not purchase any house until it has been examined by a home inspector that you selected.

Renting A Place to Live
1. Do not limit your rental housing search to classified ads or referrals from friends and acquaintances. Select buildings where you would like to live and contact their building manager or owner to see if anything is available.
2. Remember that signing a lease probably obligates you to make all monthly payments for the term of the agreement.

Home Improvement
1. Home repairs often cost thousands of dollars and are the subject of frequent complaints. Select from among several well established, licensed contractors who have submitted written, fixed-price bids for the work.
2. Do not sign any contract that requires full payment before satisfactory completion of the work.

Major Appliances
1. Consult Consumer Reports, available in most public libraries, for information about specific brands and how to evaluate them, including energy use. There are often great price and quality differences among brands.
2. Once you’ve selected a brand, check the phone book to learn what stores carry this brand, then call at least four of these stores for the prices of specific models. After each store has given you a quote, ask if that’s the lowest price they can offer you. This comparison shopping can save you as much as $100 or more.

Electricity
1. To save as much as hundreds of dollars a year on electricity, make certain that any new appliances you purchase, especially air conditioners and furnaces, are energy-efficient. Information on the energy efficiency of major appliances is found on Energy Guide Labels required by federal law.
2. Enrolling in load management programs and off-hour rate programs offered by your electric utility may save you up to $100 a year in electricity costs. Call your electric utility for information about these cost-saving programs.

Home Heating
1. A home energy audit can identify ways to save up to hundreds of dollars a year on home heating (and air conditioning). Ask your electric or gas utility if they can do this audit for free or for a reasonable charge. If they cannot, ask them to refer you to a qualified professional.

Local Telephone Service
1. Check with your phone company to see whether a flat rate or measured service plan will save you the most money.
2. You will usually save money by buying your phones instead of leasing them.
3. Check your local phone bill to see if you have optional services that you don’t really need or use. Each option you drop could save you $40 or more each year.

Long Distance Telephone Service
1. Long distance calls made during evenings, at night, or on weekends can cost significantly less than weekday calls.
2. If you make more than a few long distance calls each month, consider subscribing to a calling plan. Call several long distance companies to see which one has the least expensive plan for the calls you make.
3. Whenever possible, dial your long distance calls directly. Using the operator to complete a call can cost you an extra $6.

Food Purchased at Markets
1. You can save hundreds of dollars a year by shopping at the lower-priced food stores. Convenience stores often charge the highest prices.
2. You will spend less on food if you shop with a list.
3. You can save hundreds of dollars a year by comparing price-per-ounce or other unit prices on shelf labels. Stock up on those items with low per-unit costs.

Prescription Drugs
1. Since brand name drugs are usually much more expensive than their generic equivalents, ask your physician and pharmacist for generic drugs whenever appropriate.
2. Since pharmacies may charge widely different prices for the same medicine, call several. When taking a drug for a long time, also consider calling mail-order pharmacies, which often charge lower prices.

Funeral Arrangements
1. Make your wishes known about your funeral, memorial, or burial arrangements in writing. Be cautious about prepaying because there may be risks involved.
2. For information about the least costly options, which could save you several thousand dollars, contact a local memorial society, which is usually listed in the Yellow Pages under funeral services.
3. Before selecting a funeral home, call several and ask for prices of specific goods and services, or visit them to obtain an itemized price list. You are entitled to this information by law and, by using it to comparison shop, you can save hundreds of dollars.

Please fill out the Christian debt information request form on the right to request more information about our Christian debt programs.

For an estimate on how much money you can save, call us toll-free at 800-646-6146, or fill out the form to your right.

For an estimate on how much money you can save, call us toll-free at 800-646-6146, or fill out the form to your right.

The tithe is an indicator of obedience to all of God’s laws. He is looking for the right attitude in our giving. If there isn’t a willingness to give back to the Lord a portion of what He has entrusted to us, then giving tithes upon tithes will not make a difference.

Many people give above 10 percent and have much more to give, but their hearts are not right (1 Corinthians 13:3). Then there are people who cannot give that much but their hearts are dedicated to God (Mark 12:42-44). This is what God is looking for, regardless of the amount you give.

In the Old Testament book of Malachi we’re told that God wants us to direct our entire tithe into the storehouse. A storehouse in the Old Testament had four functions. It was used to feed (1) the tribe of Levi and the priests of Aaron, (2) the prophets, (3) the Hebrew widows and orphans living within the city, and (4) the widows and orphans of the Gentiles who were living in and around the Hebrew city.

However, the equivalent of the Old Testament storehouse in the New Testament, as well as in our present day society, is the local church. God’s Word tells us to bring our tithes into the storehouse (Malachi 3:10). When we obey Him and pay our tithes to the church, God holds the leaders of the church responsible for the distribution of the tithes (Nehemiah 12:44-45, 13:5,13). If we associate the functions of the Old Testament storehouse to the New Testament and current local church, its fourfold function would be to provide for the needs of (1) the pastor and staff, (2) missionaries and evangelists, (3) widows, orphans, single parents, and invalids in the local church, and (4) the unsaved who surround the local church.

Some churches in America are faithful in serving the Lord through the fourfold function, but many do not. If a local church is not accepting the responsibility of the fourfold function, then believers need to ensure that the function is being accomplished through other means. The church of today is representative of the whole brotherhood of believers, not the individual church on the street corner. When God speaks of His church, it is the corporate body of Christ. When we give to the church, it is to every part of the body, not just the denominational portions.

Although no one should be encouraged to redirect their tithe from their local church completely, since the tithe is a recognition of our obedience and submission to God and is given in thanksgiving for His faithfulness in providing, our giving should not be legalistic. So, if your church is not fulfilling the fourfold function mandated by God’s Word, and if you feel God’s direction to help others outside your local church and you have no funds other than the tithe, then who is to say that you are disobeying God’s Word if you give as the Lord directs you.

Give tithes to help family members
In the Ten Commandments there is an admonition to “honor your father and mother,” but nothing is said about giving to God. Therefore, honoring and helping father and mother, as well as other needy family members, is a direct commandment. In Matthew 15:5-6, Christ confronted the Pharisees with their hypocrisy, saying that they say that they could not help their parents because they had committed the funds to God and the funds could not be redirected. He implied that their parents were just as much a part of the kingdom of God as the storehouse. So, if your parents or other immediate family members (such as spouse or children) have needs and you have no additional money other than the tithe to meet that need, they should be your first priority. However, Malachi 3:10 tells us that if we rob God of tithes and offerings, He will simply allow the devourer to come in and take it away from us anyway, so be sure you have sacrificed your portion of all funds available before you decide to give to others what belongs to God. Otherwise you could be robbing God in order to maintain a lifestyle.

Give tithes to pay for Christian education
The tithe belongs to God. It’s our material testimony that God owns everything in our lives. When we take a portion of our tithe and divert it to keep our children in Christian schools, it’s really a gift in self-interest. Educational costs are your normal responsibility. Therefore, if God wants your children to attend private school He will provide the funds without your having to divert His tithe for that purpose.

Give tithes to secular humanitarian organizations
Because our tithes are given as a testimony in His name, the ministries that serve in God’s name should be the recipients of our tithes. Therefore, the tithe should not be used to support secular organizations. However, that doesn’t mean that there are not worthy organizations to which you can give. It simply means that the tithe—the first 10 percent of your gross income—should not be used to support secular organizations.

Tithe while in debt
A farmer always keeps a portion of each harvest as seed stock to be planted next season. If he didn’t, he could never grow another crop. As Christians, our tithes are our seed stock (2 Corinthians 9:10). Proverbs 3:9-10 says that we are to honor God with the firstfruits of all that we receive. It doesn’t belong to anyone else, not even creditors. Nevertheless, we must remain true to biblical principles. So, if you have made a prior vow (in the form of taking on a debt) to someone, God directs that vow to be maintained in order to present a good witness (Proverbs 22:1). In this case, the tithe should be paid on money not already pledged to the creditors but available to disperse at your will. However, this would only be true if the vow was made before pledging to tithe. A commitment to give to God always takes precedence over any payments or commitments to creditors for debts that were contracted after a pledge to tithe.

Because tithing is a matter of the heart, we should be looking for reasons to give rather than looking for ways not to give. Perhaps those in debt could start with a smaller amount than 10 percent and remain faithful to that commitment, increasing it as God provides. Or perhaps their giving could be some sort of volunteer service to the church or to people in need within the body of Christ.

Conclusion
Tithing is a principle. God is looking for the right attitude in our giving. If there is not a willingness to give back to the Lord a portion of what He has entrusted to us, then giving tithes upon tithes will accomplish nothing. Because God is concerned more with the attitude in our giving than the actual gift or designation of it, we need to ask God what to do with the money we are returning to Him.

© Copyright 2004, Crown Financial Ministries. All rights reserved.

Please fill out the Christian debt information request form on the right to request more information about our Christian debt programs.