Debt-Free in Two Years
“I don’t stress out about our finances anymore,” says Mike Richins. “I don’t stress about anything anymore really.”
Mike lives in Meeker, Colorado with his wife, Carma, and if you had asked about his stress level a few years ago, you would have heard a completely different story. He had lost his job as an oil drilling consultant overseas. This left Mike and Carma 160,000 dollars in debt.
Our debt was outrageous,” remembers Mike. “I went for a solid, almost a solid year without working at all.”
Carma says it was devastating. “You never knew where your next dollar was coming from, or if you could eat,” she says.
It was definitely not the kind of lifestyle the Richins had grown accustomed to. “We were spending our money on goodies,” says Mike. “You know, all the nice things for me and my wife -- vehicles and campers and property. And I had no way to pay for it.”
The bills kept coming and ultimately, the financial stress took a toll on their marriage. “It got to where I wouldn’t speak to my wife,” says Mike. “Our debt situation … that was on me …it was killing me and it was tearing us apart.”
“I was left so out in the dark,” says Carma. “I had nobody to talk to, nobody to visit with, it felt like I was alone in the world.”
The couple considered divorce and bankruptcy. But, in the end, they chose to do something else. “The turning point started one night when I was watching The 700 Club,” says Mike. “And it was on – and Pat was speaking on the Law of Reciprocity and it was during a telethon. … God was telling me, hey, you want things to change in your life? And it just kept coming to me and coming to me, you know -- change, change.”
Mike made a decision to join The 700 Club and turn his focus from himself to others in need. But just minutes after making the call, Mike says, “This little thing hit me just like it’s in the back of my head. It said, 'That ain’t enough!'” So the Richins doubled their pledge!
Cama was shocked. “I’m thinking we don’t even have the $20! Where are we going to get money to pay for that?” she remembers. “And he says, 'let’s just do it' and I said, ‘we’re just going to do it.’ And I didn’t question God. …I felt the Lord tugging at my heart in this situation and so did he.”
Within three days, Mike landed a temporary job and soon Carma found work as well. And even though it was challenging to make their 4,000 dollar a month loan payments, the couple increased their pledge once again.
“A lot of people would call it crazy, but one thing that I learned is faith in God. I think He had me to the point in my life where I had to learn to be faithful to Him instead of the other things, the material things that we have in life,” says Mike.
Both Mike and Carma say the decision to give to CBN has brought extraordinary benefits. “Things started to turn around,” says Mike. “There was always somebody that came up, gave us something, you know, a little bit of money, or we’d open the mailbox and there would be a check or something,” says Carma.
And to top it off, within seven months of his first pledge, Mike landed the best job of his life, back in the oil and gas industry. “I got this job where my income increased 10-fold, right off the bat,” he says.
Trusting God and learning to give has re-focused the Richins’ priorities and turned their finances and their relationship around. In fact, in just two years, the Richins payed off every penny of their 160,000 debt!
“What’s my advice? I’m a big fan of giving, so give,” says Mike. “Do it. Just do it. Let God show you because God will.”
The Richins took a step of faith and God picked them up and carried them all the way to tremendous blessing. God will pick you up and carry you too! In the Christian life, blessing follows obedience! It’s one of God’s great principles. Is God calling you to partner with CBN? You’ll help feed hungry children, provide clean drinking water for thousands, give medical care and minister the Gospel in 180 countries around the world. Join today and allow God to bless others through you. Become a CBN partner today!