At Politico, Crown's Chuck Bentley outlines "No Quick Fix" but a way Forward for a Debt Burdened America

"After this election, it will be time for real bipartisan efforts to set a new course for America, because this current economy is a house of cards stacked far too high," warned Bentley.

ATLANTA, Oct. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On the eve of the Vice Presidential Debate highly anticipated for economic repartee between the candidates, Crown Financial Ministries CEO Chuck Bentley warned that ordinary Americans are now mimicking Uncle Sam's horrendous spending patterns – and everyone needs to make a change.

Writing at Politico today, Bentley noted: "Bill Gross of PIMCO may have put it best when he said that we're a nation run by fiscal drunks. That should now be obvious to all. Less obvious, and possibly more troubling, is that this unbridled binge spending is now practiced by the least among us. The poor are getting poorer when measured by their debt.

"A national crisis in spending beyond our means reaches from the White House to the home front. Recently, the Labor Department noted that the bottom fifth of Americans spent more than double their incomes (through things like credit cards, drawing from savings and payday loans). In a healthy budget, debt payments should not be more than 5 percent of monthly spending. But the Economic Policy Institute reports that in 2010, about one-fourth of the poorest fifth of households were spending more than 40 percent of their income servicing debt."

America is burdened by a Financial Education Gap, a serious lack of knowledge and skills for making a plan for success. But with more than 35 years of experience in helping people find a way forward, Crown's MoneyLife^® Mentoring program can help.

MoneyLife Mentoring begins with an intricately designed series of assessments that includes the MoneyLife Indicator™ (a financial health assessment), easy to understand tools and materials for making a plan, and 5 free sessions with qualified financial mentors so that everyone can ask their most difficult questions with complete confidentiality. Crown, a non-profit, is not there to sell any financial products, but to show people how they can make a plan to do well.

"After helping millions of people over the last 35 years to make a change in their finances, we know that the hardest part is deciding to get started," said Bentley. "But people can turn their own lives around, whether or not our political leaders make that choice."

To learn more about MoneyLife Mentoring, go to: www.crown.org/mentoring  

Crown, a non-profit, helps people and businesses integrate their values into business practices, debt reduction, and financial decision-making. For more than 35 years, Crown has been offering economic analysis and advice based on timeless truths. Theirs is a strong, international grassroots organization with offices in the U.S. and overseas. Crown experts work one on one with individuals and business leaders, as well as through workshops and seminars, teaching people how to build on a strong foundation that includes the business principles and practices found in the Bible. It is well known for its cutting edge materials first developed by its founder, the late Larry Burkett.  For more information, go to www.crown.org or call 800-722-1976.

SOURCE Crown Financial Ministries