Debt free living. Depending on what social circles you mingle with the most, it may or may not be a popular subject to discuss. Society tells us to leverage everything from engagement rings and houses, to boats and your kid’s college degree. It seems like everywhere we look, we see people over leveraging themselves…up to their ears in debt. So we took a step back a few years ago to evaluate our own debts. House, vehicle, RV, even a beach condo. All very acceptable things in today’s world. Then we thought about what doors of opportunity would open if we weren’t making those monthly payments to lenders.
We got real honest with ourselves. And before we knew it, we were committing ourselves to living a debt free life. Not because it was the popular thing to do, but because our own hearts were convicted to do so. After a lot of prayer and heart-to-hearts, it became obvious to us that the Lord was urging us to reevaluate our lives. Not just financially, but pressing upon us that He had bigger plans for our lives if we just took this one step.
I know you’re probably thinking it, so let’s just get it out of the way now. No, we did not go through Financial Peace University with Dave Ramsey. However, I do feel like his program works and works very well for anyone wanting to pursue financial freedom. And to be honest, if we had followed his program, we would have been debt free a lot sooner.
Today, we’re just sharing our journey. We hope that by sharing our hearts, it may inspire others to pursue a life free from the chains of being a slave to a lender. And instead, begin rewriting the narrative of your family as a whole that will affect the generations that follow you long after you’re gone.
Why Debt Free Living?
The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender
Proverbs 22:7
There are many reasons why debt free living is so desirable. We honestly didn’t get really serious about it until after we decided to hit the road and travel full-time in an RV in 2017. We slowly began realizing how little we truly needed to be happy; that having four cars in the driveway, a big house in a desirable neighborhood, and a closet full of clothes that never get worn was just way too much…stuff. And that’s just it, it’s just stuff. Clutter that slowly fills up the spaces of your life. Until, one day, you realize just how much all this stuff has control over you. At least, that’s how we began to feel.
Our first challenge was downsizing from a 2,600sqft house to a 250-ish sqft camper. Yet, somehow, we still managed to bring more than we needed with us. Seriously. Breaking the mentality of needing stuff is hard, y’all. It doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process, and that’s totally okay.
As we continued to simplify and downsize our lives, not just financially but materialistically as well, we noticed something. We were less stressed. We started being intentional about helping others because we were less focused on ourselves, and we started feeling less attached to things and more attached to the experiences we were having and memories we were making. All of a sudden, this minimalistic lifestyle started taking priority.
We sold my favorite car that I’ve ever had simply because we couldn’t justify having it sit in storage any longer. Even though it was brand new, completely paid for, and I would probably need it again someday. Sold. Boxes and boxes of clothes. Donated. Decorations, knick knacks, furniture. Gone. We purged at least half of our belongings in one fell swoop, and we still felt like we had way too much.
It was freeing! The feeling of not being attached to things. It’s freeing. Having more financial security, whether it’s because you have less bills to pay or you’re simply just spending less money on things you don’t need. It’s freeing. The Lord opened our eyes to a whole new way of life because we were faithful to what He was calling us to do. And still, Jon and I had no idea just how much of a blessing this [seemingly] little act of faith would be just 3 years later.
So why debt free living? Because God called us to.
We believe that we can do bigger things for Him debt free than we ever could otherwise. We know that God is our ultimate provider. Our security and comfort are found in Him, not our bank account. That doesn’t mean we can be frivolous with our finances, though. Our wealth comes from the Lord, and He calls us to be good caretakers of it.
As read in the Parable of the Bags of Gold in Matthew 25:14-30, the master rewards the servants who steward their money well.
His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”
Matthew 25:21
How Did We Do It?
Well, let’s just say that we would have had Dave Ramsey pulling what little hair he has left out of his head. Haha! Long story short, we bought and sold property. A lot. Our way was far from the conventional way. And truth be told, we took a lot of big financial risks. You see, over the years, we’ve realized that we are (mostly Jon) savvy when it comes to investing in real estate.
It’s frustrating at times, because Jon always wants to feel like he’s getting a deal. Which means that there were plenty of houses that we wanted, but they just didn’t work out because we (Jon) were unwilling to pay too much. Frustrating, yes. But, for the most part, we enjoy buying and selling real estate, so I guess that’s really all that matters. And thank goodness for Jon, because I probably would have made a few terrible house purchases based on emotion instead of being savvy about numbers and investing.
Over the last 8 years of our marriage, we’ve bought and sold 7 properties. Some we held for just a few months, while others we kept for at least 2 years. We were all over the map…literally. And each time we sold, we made more than what we had paid for the property. Awesome, right?! Yes, but it didn’t come without risks. Particularly when we decided to move to Idaho.
We were excited about a new place to explore, and eager to find a property to settle down into after being on the road in our camper for a year and a half. We ended up finding a dream property (for me). A 20-acre farm with mature fruit trees, dreamy hay fields, and a 100-year-old barn. It was a portrait photographer’s dream! I had always wanted a property that my clients could come to for their family and senior portraits (And let me tell you, it’s been a hit over the last two years). Only problem? It was way out of our budget.
We prayed. A lot. Like a lot, a lot. It was a big financial risk; the biggest we had ever taken. So we pulled some strings and made it happen, even though it would take us way outside our financial comfort zone. A month later, we were moving to Idaho! The months that followed were tough. The financial strain caused a lot of tension. We knew it would. It was manageable, but we had been so used to living comfortably for so long. Here we were, in a new state, starting our businesses from scratch, and with a mortgage that we hated.
And yet, God provided a way. There were even a couple times when money came to us from random, unexplainable places that just so happened to be the amount we needed to pay a bill. Things I had only heard stories about happening to other people, were happening to us.
It didn’t take long for us to realize that this property would just be a stepping stone for us. There was a bigger picture to all of this, even though we had no idea what that would be. Again, our hearts were being pulled toward living simply. And this…this was not simple. I soon realized that perhaps my “dream” wasn’t the endgame. This big, beautiful, scenic property was great…but it wasn’t everything. I believe God gave me my dream property so that I could realize just how insignificant it really was in the greater scheme of things.
For two years, we improved the property with the true endgame in mind. Debt free living. Remodeling the inside of the house, adding a new roof, building a carpenter’s dream shop in the barn, and various other landscaping maintenance were in desperate need. We even spent an entire year going through a re-zone so that we could split our property in two. Thus, making it more valuable.
Originally, we only wanted to sell the half with the house and barn; keeping the vacant 10 acres to use as a landing pad for us in the summers. But God had bigger plans than that. Through the crazy process of selling our property that I’ll spare you the confusing details of, we ended up selling both pieces separately. And in the end, the Lord gave us more than we ever hoped we’d have at this point. He had turned this financially risky decision into the biggest return on investment yet. A large part due to the fact that everyone and their brother is fleeing to Idaho right now to escape areas that have been greatly affected by Covid-19.
After dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s, we used our profit to immediately pay off the new truck and new-to-us fifth wheel we had bought last year (2019) in preparation for living on the road again.
It was official!
There were no more strings attached. No more loans to be paid. No “higher ups” to answer to.
This was it.
This was the endgame.
Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.
Proverbs 3:9-10
What’s Next?
And so begins a new endgame. After popping some celebratory Prosecco and doing a happy dance, our new reality still doesn’t quite feel real. We pray for opportunities to be put in front of us. Opportunities to be able to serve others in a greater capacity than we have before, whether by the use of our time, skills, or finances.
We want to live simply so we can give generously.
Our goal is to continue investing wisely in real estate with cash moving forward. I know that sounds bonkers. It seems crazy because it completely goes against the social norm. But now, more than ever, it’s totally within the realm of possibility for us, and we couldn’t be more grateful.
We pray for wisdom moving forward, clarity on next steps, and health and safety as we become full-time RVers/travelers again.
Our way of achieving debt free living may not be a conventional one, but don’t let that discourage you. Anyone can do this, and every person’s journey will look completely different.
If you want to pursue debt free living, our prayer for you is that you gain some inspiration and hope from our story knowing that it IS possible. It may not happen as quickly as you’d like it to, but know that God’s timing is absolutely perfect. We overshot our debt free goal by an entire year! And now that it’s all said and done, we completely understand why God was putting road blocks in our way.
We believe He wanted us to have a safe place to stay during the sudden worldwide outbreak of Covid-19. North Idaho couldn’t have been a safer place, and still is. He knew that our businesses would be greatly affected, and that having the stability of a homestead would be comforting to us…and it was. So often we lack the understanding of why our plans aren’t happening according to our own timeline.
But God...
When hard times hit, it’s easy to fall into the trap of relying on our own abilities.
But God…
As Christ followers, we firmly believe that God provides for those who are faithful to Him and his Word. It’s important that we focus on His goodness and promises not only when our lives are on track, but even more so when the train has derailed and there’s a huge mess to clean up.
Ultimately, we are just caretakers of God’s money. He blesses those who manage it well, and so we are choosing to honor Him by how we handle our finances. We’re not sure where that will lead us from here, but one thing is certain. We can trust that He already has a plan in place, and that he’ll be revealing that perfect plan at the perfect time.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord,” plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11