Proverbs 6:1-3 My child, if you have put up security for a friend’s debt or agreed to guarantee the debt of a stranger, if you have trapped yourself by your agreement and are caught by what you said follow my advice and save yourself, for you have placed yourself at your friend’s mercy. Now swallow your pride; go and beg to have your name erased.
Proverbs, the book of wisdom, gives us some financial advice in the area of relationships. In verse 1, the father advises his son not to become security for another. In our culture today, this would be advice not to co-sign a bank loan for another person. Many friendships have been destroyed because this advice was not taken. Although the borrower may have the best of intentions, sometimes they are unable to pay their note off. Does this mean we are not to help people if they ask us for help? Certainly not! However, most loan requests are not emergency help loans, but are loans to help people live in a lifestyle greater than they can afford. It is not kind to co-sign a note that will, in the end, not really be helpful to people who have not learned financial Biblical principals. Many people who go into debt for expenditures beyond their means, will, in time, leave the one who helped responsible for their debt. We should always take every agreement that we sign very seriously. We are giving our word to do something and this is a serious thing before God and men. Verse 2 says that when we are security for someone, we must keep our promise because we have given our word and therefore, we are snared with our lips. We are bound to keep our word, even when it hurts. All of us have, at times, "sworn to our own hurt." Many times, when I told someone I would do something, I have wished that I had not done so, as I had to keep my word even when it was difficult to do so. God expects us, as His children, to keep our word just as He keeps His Word. Be wise in your dealings with friends in order to keep them. Enjoy your day!