Drowning in Debt

Mike and Monique Allen started their marriage $50,000 in debt.

“I probably had about $20,000 in student loans, close to it,” Monique said. “I also had credit cards and the credit cards added up.”

“It was frustrating just to have the debt to begin with, but then to start off a marriage where really, you know, you should start with a clean slate,” Mike said.

As a software developer at a bank, Mike still didn’t make enough to take care of their needs and pay down the debt. Then, around their first anniversary, Monique quit her part time job to stay home and start a wedding accessories business. With that venture came a business credit card, and even more spending. They started a family and in time, they added another $30,000 to their existing debt.

“The problem started with inventory,” Monique said. “We decided to stock a lot of the items here so that we can get them to the customers quicker, instead of going through a drop shipper.”

That’s when Monique’s friend suggested she start tithing 10 percent of their business income.

“It just made sense,” Monique said. “So, I said, ‘I want to do what God wants me to do.’”

Monique also started watching The 700 Club. There she learned more about managing money and paying off their debts.

“I actually did see a testimony on there about a couple and their finances,” Monique said. “And I just felt like it was really, you know, close to my situation. It really felt like, you know, this can change.”

Monique decided to join The 700 Club.

“I felt in my heart that God wanted me to just step out in faith and just support,” Monique said. “Look at what this ministry is doing around the world.”

So in the midst of what had become a desperate financial situation, the Allens gave CBN a percentage of their business profits. They saw a 1,000 percent increase in their business sales. As the Allens continued to give, Mike also received a huge bonus at work.

“They did bonus checks that they normally do every year,” Mike said. “I had gotten the biggest one I had gotten ever in my whole career, which was amazing.”

The Allens have now paid off 90 percent of their debt.

“We were able to pay off our business credit card, all of our personal credit cards,” Monique said. “We were able to pay off Mike’s car. We needed a bigger car with a growing family. We were able to use cash to pay for it, which was great. This was the first time that either one of us had ever paid for a car in cash.”

“This was a really big lesson in obedience that God really showed us through this experience,” Mike said, “that if you follow Him and you do what He asked you to do, He is going to take care of you.”

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