Still, many, many times over the years, Ken and I looked around us at couples who were dealing with divorce, infidelity, terminal cancer, rebellious children, mental illness and a host of other problems that plague even the dearest Christians, and we actually thanked God that our financial situation was the area where He’d allowed us to experience trials and struggles.
That’s not to say these times were fun when we were going through them. There were months early in our marriage when we depended on the generosity of friends and family to get through. Too often, paying the bills meant deciding which bills to pay and which creditor we might be able to hold off a bit longer. Our financial situation created plenty of conflict and stress in our marriage.
There were times, I’m certain, that financial counselors (had we sought them out) would have advised that declaring bankruptcy was our best option—perhaps our only hope. But we were depending upon another Source. And time and time again, He provided just what we needed just when we needed it (and usually not a moment sooner). I have no doubt my faith is stronger for the trials we went through. And we look back on those times with few regrets.
Three of our four children have (finally) graduated from college and we have a few years reprieve from tuition bills before our youngest heads off to college. I’m now working from home, writing full-time and contributing to the family income. We still have to be careful with our spending, but we’ve made it through the toughest times. And we’re better for it—as a couple, and I believe, as a family too. Our older children didn’t have the option of being spoiled by material things and it’s served them well.
We’ll probably never be wealthy, and frankly, that’s never been a dream of mine. After some of the lean years we’ve experienced, we feel rich simply being able to pay every bill at the end of the month, and occasionally to have enough left over to take a trip to visit our grown kids and our grandbaby.
On any given day, I can feel poverty-stricken or filthy rich, depending on whom I decide to compare myself to. By Hollywood standards, I’m a pauper. By third-world standards, I’m royalty.
Besides, true wealth has very little to do with an earthly bank balance and everything to do with where our real treasures are stored up.
Discussion:
Read Luke 12:22-34
1. Do you ever worry about your financial situation? What does the Bible have to say about money and worry?
2. What other money issues trouble your marriage? Difference in attitudes toward money? Out-of-control spending? Not being a good steward of the resources and belongings you have. Not being generous with what you have?
3. The Bible has much to say on the subject of finances. Read and discuss with your spouse the various money issues in these Scriptures: Matthew 6:25-34; 1 Timothy 6:10; Deuteronomy 14:22-29; and Romans 13:8.
If you feel you are not serving God as you should with your finances, what steps can you and your spouse take to move in that direction?
Deborah Raney has been writing for a dozen years and is at work on her fourteenth novel. Her first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title. The book was recently reissued in an updated version for the ten-year anniversary of its first release. Deb and her husband, Ken, have been married for thirty-four years and live in Kansas. They have four children and two grandchildren. Visit Deborah's website at www.deborahraney.com.
Tobi Layton is a fifth grade teacher and freelance writer in southeast Missouri. Tobi has been married for seven years to Ryan Layton, a high school biology teacher. Tobi and Ryan are involved with the youth group at their church in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where they also help teach a middle school Christian education class. The Laytons have two sons.
Tobi Layton is the daughter of Ken and Deborah Raney. The Raneys and the Laytons share an August 11 wedding anniversary.
