Credit crunch - 10th November 2008
Welcome to Monday. This week I have taken the theme of current affairs and sought to draw out a Christian viewpoint on each day’s subject, and we start with the most pertinent one of all – the ‘credit crunch’.
It has been impossible to avoid these infamous words in recent months. The ‘credit crunch’ has really come to the fore over recent months, but in reality, it has been brewing for the last 18 months. For those of you that don’t know, I work in the commercial credit industry and I have seen hundreds of lenders withdraw from the marketplace – some have gone bust, others have run out of cash. People have lost their jobs and pressure in the marketplace has increased significantly.
Trying to explain the credit crunch is difficult in less than a page – but if you want a down to earth explanation and commentary on what’s going on, can I recommend Robert Peston’s blog on the BBC website. Of all the commentators, he is probably the most grounded of all of them and isn’t in the business of hyping it up.
The effect of a credit crunch is to reduce the availability of cash to the marketplace at all levels – that means it is harder to borrow money and if you do borrow, it is likely to be more expensive. Most established economic systems work on some form of debt principle. We all tighten our belts and we try to survive.
Many of us find ourselves struggling to make ends meet. My point here is that God will provide – it’s not a hope, it’s a statement of fact. Matthew 6: 25-34 covers this area fantastically well – the fact that worrying doesn’t help any either.
Sometimes, God needs us to be at a point where there is nothing more we can do before He steps in, and it is at that point that He answers our prayers, quite often in a way that we find unimaginable. Now that’s not a reason to put a tenner on the lottery each week because that is just a waste, and may also be considered as gambling!
All these ‘crunch issues’ create worry. Psychologists have analysed worry endlessly, and most have come to the conclusion that it gets us nowhere – it tends to be a negative emotion that leads to a downward spiral, and arresting it can be a very difficult business.
Bobby McFerrin sang ‘Don’t worry, be happy’ back in 1988, and it’s a pretty good way to try and view things – although this is not an endorsement for recklessness. Can I recommend not worrying and being happy today! | 