The Family Disciple Me Podcast // Discipleship Starts With a Conversation

DESTINATION DECISIONS | Convo #4: Debt Or Investment?

• Tosha Williams for FDM

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A tiny shift in trajectory can change everything. We take that idea out of the abstract and make it practical by mapping every choice to a simple question: does this create debt I’ll pay later, or an investment that pays me later? From the way GPA decimals tilt scholarship offers to how entry-level jobs build a resilient work ethic, we connect money, character, and faith into one clear framework you can use with your family in meaningful, intentional conversations today.

We break down the “character economy” in plain language: selfishness, deception, impurity, and laziness accrue hidden interest that shows up as conflict, stress, and lost trust. Generosity, truthfulness, purity, and hard work compound like good savings—quietly at first, then powerfully over time. With Ephesians 5 guiding the conversation, we explore how wise living means making the most of every opportunity and considering where each step leads. Proverbs and Haggai echo the call to think about our paths, not just our moments.

You’ll hear practical prompts to spark conversations with kids and teens: how will this choice work out next week, next year, or twenty years from now? What habits are we planting that we actually want to harvest? We also highlight prayer as a high-yield investment that steadies our decisions and aligns our desires. By the end, you’ll have a simple, repeatable way to help your family evaluate decisions, adjust course, and aim for a destination marked by freedom, integrity, and peace.

You can find the devotion-driven discipleship guide that goes along with this episode at the Family Disciple Me app.

If this conversation collection resonates, follow the show, share it with a friend who’s shaping young lives, and leave a podcast review!

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The Family Disciple Me ministry exists to catalyze devotion driven discipleship in our homes and around the world. We believe that discipleship starts with a conversation, and FDM provides free, easily-accessible, biblical resources to encourage these meaningful conversations along life's way. Sign up through our website to be "the first to know" about upcoming releases and resources (including the FDM App - coming soon!!!) You can also follow Family Disciple Me on social media.

Family Disciple Me is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ministry, and all donations are tax deductible. More information, blogs, statement of faith and contact info can be found at familydiscipleme.org

SPEAKER_00:

Trajectory. That's one of my very favorite words. You know, the slightest nuance of your trajectory can completely change your destination. This is true in so many areas, if not every area of life. But in this week's discipleship conversation, as we continue in the destination series, we're going to specifically talk about how it applies to debt or investment. As far as I'm concerned, the conversation about debt or investment is about so much more than money. Hi, my name is Tasha Williams. I'm the founder and executive director of Family Disciple Me. Recently, I've been spending time with my high school senior, and we've been looking at college academic scholarships, and we have noticed how infinitesimal decimal points in your GPA affect big dollars in future scholarships. Truth is, a student's trajectory in their ninth, and tenth, and 11th grade years totally impact their senior year and the opportunities that they have toward college and their future. And I'm telling you, if you have younger children, it's not too early to start that conversation about the value of studying and getting good grades. I have a ninth grader as well as a senior, and I promise you I am talking to her on a regular basis about having the good trajectory of good grades because it has such a big payoff later. With my high school senior, we've also talked about how many hours working a minimum wage job it takes to earn a thousand dollars. And for the record, working these entry-level jobs are such a good investment for the returns of a really strong work ethic. This is really good debt versus investment strategy. This is true though, not just in academics and scholarships. This investment principle is true in perhaps every area of life. And conversely, the debt principle is true in life as well. This debt and investment trajectory is true in character, and as important as money and finances and scholarships are, I believe this is even the greater application to this whole conversation and this whole principle. In Ephesians 5 verses 15 and 16, the Bible says be very careful then how you live, not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity because the days are evil. God's word encourages us to be so thoughtful about how we spend our lives. There are some paths that lead to serious debt, but other paths are really good, wise choices that invest in our future. To be very careful how you live means that you think about where you're going and how you're getting there. You see, debt is when you have a price you must pay in your future. Investment is when you have something good coming your way in the future. These concepts apply to character. Think with me for a moment, if you will. Some of these are selfishness, deception, sexual impurity, laziness. Think about the debt that each of those incurs. Have a conversation about that with your kids. How is selfishness going to work out for you a week from now? How is this laziness going to help you a year from now? How is that sexual impurity going to affect your life 20 years from now? There are so many conversations that we can have with our kids about character traits where we can help them see that it's not just a choice for today, but it has a consequence for tomorrow. We want to help them see what happens when we make investments. For instance, the opposite of selfishness is generosity. What is the investment that generosity makes toward our future? I can think of so many good outcomes for that. Or what is the outcome, the investment of truthfulness? What does that gain you a week from now, a month from now, five years from now? What about purity, sexual purity? What difference will that make in your life a year from now when you're so glad that you didn't sacrifice that for a moment of pleasure way back when and incur great debt? Or what is the investment of hard work? What a great conversation to have with our kids. The hard work that they do today in school or in their part-time jobs or in doing their chores or just managing their own lives. That is an investment that teaches them stronger character traits for the future. Talk about these things with your kids. This is what I'm talking to my kids about. This is what I'm talking with the girls that I'm discipling about. It is so important to me that we teach our kids to think in terms of debt or investment, because you know as well as I do that they are going to reap what they sow. Proverbs reminds us, carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established. And of course, this verse is about so much more than our feet. You can go down paths that incur debt you don't want to have to pay. Or you can carefully think about your life and establish good habits and good character traits that sow blessing into your future. Isn't this such a great conversation topic to have with our kids? In so many different ways and with so many different applications, we can talk to them about the trajectory that they're on. We can talk to them about whether their trajectory of today is sending them to the destination of debt or investment tomorrow. We can talk to them about how they're investing in their future through their character today. We can also talk to them about if there's anything that they're planting into their lives that they don't want to reap the consequences for or pay the debt for in the future. You know, in the book of Haggai, God is quoted as saying, give careful thought to your ways. We can obey God by thinking about where we're going and how we're getting there. Your choices today affect your destination tomorrow. And let me just add this, because we've recently been talking about prayer a lot, I do believe that prayerfulness is also an investment in the future. Of course, prayerfulness is looking back at the past and looking at our present in gratitude and thankfulness to God. But prayerfulness also looks toward the future and it doesn't incur debt. It is an investment. So just like you can give your child five or ten dollars and say, how can you use that to invest and make tomorrow better? You can also talk to your kiddos about the wise character traits that invest in their future. I challenge you, have this conversation with them from so many different perspectives. Work ethic, purity, truthfulness, prayerfulness, so many different ways you can approach this topic. You'll know when it's the time in your family with those entrusted to you. Take the moment. Discipleship starts with a conversation. Skip the intimidation, just get straight to the conversation, see what God's Word says about it. Perhaps start with our theme verse this week, Ephesians 5, 15 and 16, talking about be very careful then how you live, making the most of every opportunity. Encourage your kids, inspire them, challenge them to make wise choices. This is how we can all live a trajectory that leads toward the destination of reaping the benefits of investment. I don't know about you, but that sounds pretty good to me. So be encouraged, my friend. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May he turn his face toward you and may you walk in wisdom, making the best use of your time and making the most of every opportunity you have, investing your life for the glory of God, for the good of others, and for the best of your days. God bless you, friend. Be encouraged until next time. Go with God.