The Origin of the Debt Crisis

   As we look around at our twenty first century world we see nations struggling with financial stability. The crisis seems independent of size or national wealth. From tiny Greece with an economy the size of Massachusetts, to the global powerhouse of America. What is going on? Why are nations burdened with debt regardless of their economic vigor? What must change?

   Nations are no different than the private citizens who live within their borders. It’s not like a country can escape a basic pull that drives its people. But what is at the core of this borrowing frenzy? A wise man once said that human outlooks could be divided into two basic opposing schools of thought. One outlook is the philosophy of get, of personal acquisition, the yearning to gratify personal desire above all else. The other opposing philosophy of life he called the way of give, the aspiration to selflessly assist others.

   What does personal outlook have to do with our world or national economy? These two ways of approaching life, to get for yourself or give to others are the primal cultural building blocks of nations. They transcend national borders, they are a part of the human psyche, a part of our human outlook. As people are motivated so shall the nation be motivated and ultimately the whole world as well. A person driven by the desire to get and acquire for themselves physical possessions feels that those things will gain them happiness. This desire will cause them to purchase way beyond what they can afford, what they earn, so they turn to borrowing. Credit is a benign sounding word that really means you have indebted yourself or enslaved your life and your future to a stranger who becomes your master. If you don’t think that is so try telling your credit card company that you have decided to take a sabbatical, to stop working and go to the lake to enjoy full time the jet ski you purchased with their money. Nations are no different, after all people run nations.

   A nation decides to borrow, to “get” what they can not afford, in order to “have” prosperity for its citizens through massive public spending. They seek credit from friendly nations and even adversaries who then become their masters. This basic human drive to get for ourselves that which we have not earned and therefore do not deserve affects governments and citizens alike and is at the heart and core of our entire world economy.

   Another very wise man, Jesus the Messiah, who also happened to be God and who came to live among us once said; “It is better to give than to receive.” This simple philosophy if applied to personal lives or national and global governments would lead to a world of unprecedented prosperity. Why? Because it works. God has proved that by what he has created. His entire universe reflects the give way of life, his outgoing philosophy. Just look at his creation, see the abundance of food, fresh air and water, even the Sun that gives us warmth and allows life to flourish on Earth. It is all free. His ultimate act of giving was offering his son in payment for our reckless disregard for a few simple rules, his Ten Commandments, that if obeyed would give us the happiness we desire and freedom from our enslavement to the way of get.

   God is not interfering in our lives or our government now but he will. He will do this out of love and concern for the safety and eternal happiness he wants to give us. His plan for humanity includes a special world government, the Kingdom of God, based on the principle of give, free from the bondage of debt. Isn’t it time to escape servitude to the “get” way? Come explore giving as a way of life with the cadre of blessed people who recognize the beauty and simplicity of God’s outlook. Join the people of God in living a philosophy that will end forever the crisis of debt.