Before marriage advice

[unkern]

If you are planning on getting married and are going to have a big wedding, house, etc this is for you.

The lord had never planned for you to make yourselves slaves to debt. If the Lord does not pay for everything as he has promised us, then that is not his will.

You dont want to add debt to your marriage anyways because money is the leading cause of divorce.

Deuteronomy 15:6 (New International Version)


6 For the LORD your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.

 

[kl_lorent]

My pastor has challenged us to not just live within our means but to live under our means. He even went so far as to say living at or above one's means is a sin. It's an extreme statement to make but when you think about it, it makes since because it teaches you how to live and be satisfied with what you have and then if you end up making more money later you're prepared for it without going out and spending the extra on a bunch of useless crap. It also means that you are always ready to be used by the Lord through giving of your money.

Nobody ever said it was the Lord's responsibility to pay our debts and bills but it's good to consider that all the money in the world is the Lord's anyway so it is always a gift from Him when we are able to make it.

I'm surprised by such an extreme statement from Lynn about being a slave to the Bible, throughout the post I got the impression that you must be strong in your faith but if you don't rely on the Bible then you'll get no where. Jesus talked more about money in the Bible than about Heaven so I think that it has to be the first place we turn when we're looking for answers to life's problems. Of course not EVERY answer is found in the Bible, like how to heal a broken bone or whatever. It's not about being a slave to the Bible but out of a desire to know God's heart on an issue this is the one and only Book that we can turn to.

Another question, how does God tell you what He expects of you? He speaks through the Bible and if there is anything that you feel like He has spoken to you personally than the wisest thing you could do is confirm in the Word that you truly heard His voice. It continues to bother me to hear that you don't feel like answers to life's problems are in the Bible, I hope that you can come to change your mind about this because there's answers in the Bible about how to treat people who wrong us, how to treat people in general, whether we should give into sexual sin, etc. Really, the Bible is great stuff and regular study of it is necessary for spiritual maturity.

 

[unkern]

I do have a question lynn are you and your boyfriend living together?

If you had read the scripture i wrote earlier you would know that God never intended for us to put ourselves in debt. You make yourself a slave to that debt until it is paid off. That is finances that cannot be used for Gods good. You cannot move into the missionary field until it is paid off. If you were to have a house of something like that you would not be able move until it is paid off.

God will use you in every situation your in, BUT for instance if you killed someone then went to Jesus, you still would go to jail for your crime and could not be used the way you were intended too. The best way to go about handling those finances is to save up first then pay for whatever it is you need or most likely want. Because we are to be a people that can lend to many.

I cannot believe you would not rely on the Lord with your finances in ever situation, you must have faith that God will take care of you, and yes God will pay for your every NEED.

The bible has an answer for everything even if the answer is simple God

 

[The Nihilist]

what are you talking about?

 

[The Nihilist]

maybe he expects god to front you the money for a house so you don't have to pay a mortgage

 

[rateyes]

I dont get what you are saying.

So if your parents dont have the money for you to go to college, and scholarships dont pay the whole ride, are you suppose to not go to college because you dont have the money, and will be in debt?

 

[unkern]

exactly, nothing but debt has consumed my family. Both me and my wife want to do missionary work but are unable to because of debt. Her father Makes 80,000 a year and barely gets by because of so much debt. Take it from us dont get started on debt, and best of all if you save up before God can use you the way he intends to use you

 

[unkern]

Lynn:
1 John 2:15 says Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

As a sister in christ I know you could be living a better life, take a look into your bible and find the truth.

 

[The Nihilist]

Lynn:
1 John 2:15 says Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

As a sister in christ I know you could be living a better life, take a look into your bible and find the truth.

This verse says nothing about debt. If I do not love the world, I may pay cash for everything or borrow everything with complete indifference

 

[JCFantasy23]

I just take a mixture of the following advice:

1. HOW I TAKE LYNN'S POINT: My mother always told me God helps people who helps themselves. I fully believe this. If you try and fail, but then try and try again, and it is God's will, you will ultimately succeed in some way or learn something of value. I believe this is the point Lynn is making. God does not take care of your debt and all of your problems by themselves, but helps you do it when you help yourself.

2. HOW I TAKE ORIGINAL POSTERS POINT: If God leads you somewhere and you follow his plan, then everything will work out (money wise and otherwise) I believe this is the point the original poster was making with her reference.

3. MY ADDED POINT: Do not commit overindulgence (AKA GLUTTONY). Overindulge in food will make you obsese and ultimately unhealthy; overindulgence in nicotine will lead to addiction and harm your body (nicotine in small doses is actually beneficial) - the same can be said for alcohol. Overindulgence in hobbies leads to addiction and ignoring other things of value. Overindulgence in child rearing leads to over protectiveness, which can harm a child. The same is with money. Overindulge in splurged bills and things you don't have to have at the right time, and debt will occur. This is why overindulgence is listed as a sin. It's not made up as one "just because", but because it ultimately hurts us if we give in to it. Avoid this sin with money and things can look easier if times get tight.

All great, valid points, we can combine them all.

 

[unkern]

God helps those who are obedient, If God only helps those that help themselves there is no need for God. Believing and following God are all about giving him absolutly everything, Alot of times the job God has set up for you is not the highest paying job, but if you trust in him he'll take care of your every need. Very few in America rely completely on God and that is why it faces such a terrible judgment. Study up on Acts, Romans, and all the other books.

God said that if you follow him he will give you the desires of your heart, when your following him your desires are no longer cars and houses and all that. Your desires become God and Saving Gods people.

Remember he also said you would live a life of abundance (the opposite of scarcity), This means that you will have all of your needs overly met. Plenty of food to eat, plenty of clothes to wear, etc. If its not a need it doesnt need to be met.

You should be able to minister to people in every situation, at your job, your apartment, etc. those are the things that matter.

 

[GQ Chris]

I will not go into debt if I fall in love with someone and want to marry them. No way, I been down that debt road before and I don't want to go back.

 

[nbiol]

I'll most likely end up married and in debt. Student loans will be the bane of my existence.

However, without them, I wouldn't be going to school and i'd probably let my life waste away. I'm okay with that.

 

[GQ Chris]

I'll most likely end up married and in debt. Student loans will be the bane of my existence.

However, without them, I wouldn't be going to school and i'd probably let my life waste away. I'm okay with that.

As long as you are willing to pay the Piper, more power to ya.


I, on the other hand, hate receiving bill notices.

 

[JCFantasy23]

As long as you are willing to pay the Piper, more power to ya.


I, on the other hand, hate receiving bill notices.

Haha, I think I hear an ominous piano chord when I open my mailbox sometimes

 

[k450ofu3k-gh-5ipe]

exactly, nothing but debt has consumed my family. Both me and my wife want to do missionary work but are unable to because of debt. Her father Makes 80,000 a year and barely gets by because of so much debt. Take it from us dont get started on debt, and best of all if you save up before God can use you the way he intends to use you

I think you're a bit confused about debt. For one, all debt is not equal: a house mortgage is not the same as a car payment. A mortgage is actually saving you money in the long run and building net worth whereas a car payment is, in effect, flushing money down the toilet. Things like a house mortgage, and student loans (when one actually uses his/her degree to get a better paying job) are "good" kinds of debt because owning a house saves a person money in the long run and builds personal net worth while going to college by taking out student loans increases one's earning potential tremendously. Do you understand the difference?

Having massive credit card debt, buying new cars, and going into debt by spending money on depreciable items is bad, and that's what I reckon your wife's father is in debt for.

 

[unkern]

Whether or not it depreciates has nothing to do with it being the right thing to do or not. I didnt write the bible, but I sure am ready to follow it.

If a mortgage is good I can say that sex with random women or even men is good because hey It feels good, drugs feel good, alcohol feels good, beating the crap out of someone feels good. Just because its good to man doesnt mean its good to God

 

[KatacrossthePond]

Remember he also said you would live a life of abundance (the opposite of scarcity), This means that you will have all of your needs overly met. Plenty of food to eat, plenty of clothes to wear, etc. If its not a need it doesnt need to be met.

This is a fallacy, and a very dangerous one to boot. God never promises us food, clothes, money in abundance, he promises us LIFE, abundantly, in the now and in the world to come.

Tell the above to the millions of faithful Christians in the African countries, or the persecuted Christians in Sri Lanka, China, Maledives, and countless other countries.

 

[JCFantasy23]

God helps those who are obedient, If God only helps those that help themselves there is no need for God.

I'm sorry but I do believe God helps those who help themselves. I don't mean he only helps those who do, but he tries to initiate action on those who are stagnant and not trying to improve their life or a bad situation. I do not believe you can have one person not trying to survive in the world because of something such as bad action or lack of motivation, and God will just carry them with miraculously appearing money and luck the rest of their lives.

 

[kl_lorent]

I saw a bumper sticker yesterday that I had to mention on here, it said, "God helps those who CAN'T help themselves." I think that's more like it. I think they are trying to say that in those moments when you've done all you can and there's no more you can physically do then God pulls through, we have a song at church with the lyric, "You emerge in emergency, You arrive in my time of need." I love it.

I think that overall though that everyone is getting tied up over words. We all know that we still have to work to earn money and that MOST of the time money doesn't just appear from thin air. I think also that we, as the American people could always learn how to trust in God more though with our finances and our stuff because a lot of times we end up trusting in it more than in God, me included. God is too complex to be able to describe in one line and there's so much mystery to Him that we don't really know who all he's helping when.