You're Richer Than You Think?

There is a bank in my part of the world with an advertising campaign that uses the slogan "You're Richer Than You Think." The basic premise is to entice the consumer to use their banking and financial services which will help them save money and realize that they are "richer than they think." There is one television commercial in particular, in which a young couple put on their poker faces and ready themselves to drive a hard bargain as they enter the office of a bank employee. Soon after, however, they begin to melt as they hear the banker explain the different ways that she can help them save money and how much they will be saving each month. I don't know why, after months of airing, it was only last week that I actually paid attention to what the baker was saying, but I did. She listed about three different ways that she could help them save. First was to reduce their mortgage interest rate, second was to reduce their credit card interest rate and third was to reduce their credit line interest rate. Here is the thought I had...if the only way they are saving money is by reduced interest rates then they are not really saving at all they are just bleeding more slowly. And if the only way to "save" money is to be paying less interest it means that they owe money, which means they are definitely not "richer than they think!" At the very most, they are just a bit less poor than they thought.
I am not going to outright condemn credit and say that it has no role to play. I recognize that it is almost unheard of and almost impossible to live in a place like where I live without some kind of loan for a house or car or other big ticket item that one needs to live. Living without a car and a home in the suburbs of Canada, especially in winter, may not be realistic. I think that there is room for honest debate and discussion about how credit might be used in a wise and responsible manner. The reality however, is that in far too many cases, whether it be the way that it is advertised or the way that it is practiced, credit is not used in a wise and responsible manner. If you have a chance, spend some time and research the average credit debt for your part of the world, and depending on where you live you might be surprised. A thought that I have been challenged by is this:
Could credit debt be considered a form of slavery, and if so could it lead to me being out of step with what scripture teaches. In particular I am thinking about passages such as 1 Corinthians 7:23 which states "You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men." We are called to be slaves only to Christ, that He is to have our full devotion and commitment and that there should not be anything to stand in the way of that full commitment to Christ. Could it be that our debt- which means that we owe something to someone else and that in reality we work for them and that even what we have a earn does not really belong to us until that debt is paid-that this debt stands between us and Jesus and could affect our full commitment to Him?
I am still thinking about this question, what the implications of carrying debt are -mentally, emotionally, spiritually etc., about the practical reality of life, what and how we rationalize things, and what might be worldly influence that is dishonouring to God. While I think these things through, however, the one thing I can say for certain is that if am carrying debt I most certainly will not be fooled into thinking that I am "Richer Than You Think."