8 Important Money Decisions for Every Couple

Russ Crosson

Description

Every marriage has conflict. And many of those conflicts are related to finances.Russ Crosson, president and CEO of Ronald Blue & Co., shows readers how to avoid the potentially disastrous landmine of financial turmoil.Through these pages, Russ assists readers to think correctly about marriage and about money, rather than default to the way the world sees these areas of life. He covers specific areas of money management where financial conflicts usually occur:Men who work too muchWhy wives work The problem of debtMaking sound investmentsGiving wiselyUnderstanding insurance To avoid pitfalls, Russ offers a game plan couples can use to achieve harmony in their marriage, no matter what their financial situation.

Sujets

• Personal finance

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
• Date de parution: 01 janvier 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736946230
• Langue: English

Extrait

Endorsements for Russ Crosson and 8 Important Money Decisions for Every Couple
Having been in the communications business nearly 30 years and married for nearly 25 of those years, I was excited to see a book on the subject of money that is really as much about communication as it is about money. Russ Crosson covers both subjects with precision and discernment, reminding me I must never stop learning about money or communication. Every couple should study this book together.
Mark DeMoss, founder,
The DeMoss Group
I thoroughly enjoy Russ Crosson s rich and credible financial counsel in this book. It equips and empowers a couple to live in harmony, free from financial bondage.
Karen Loritts,
Conference speaker
There are key decisions that every couple makes when it comes to money that determine long-term direction and destination. However, men and women communicate differently and have different perspectives when it comes to money. I wholeheartedly endorse this book by Russ Crosson. It not only gives practical advice for eight important financial areas every couple must address, but it also takes the stress out of the discussion, ultimately leading to more unity, harmony, and peace of mind for couples.
Mark Batterson, author of The Circle Maker , and
lead pastor, National Community Church
We all know that one of the most common sources of conflict in any marriage is money. We also know that money issues are not primarily about money. As Jesus indicates, money is a revealer of the heart. In this book, Russ Crosson gets to the heart of the matter. I have known Russ and Julie for nearly 30 years. I have not only been blessed by their teaching but also by their friendship. I can truly say that the content of this book is born out of their own lives and marriage. I have seen them practice what they preach. I believe that every married (or soon-to-be-married) couple will benefit greatly by the biblical insights and practical wisdom found in 8 Important Money Decisions for Every Couple .
Tim Kallam, senior pastor,
Mountain Brook Community Church
HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible , 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked AMP are taken from The Amplified Bible, Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Used by permission. ( www.Lockman.org )
Verses marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version , NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
Verses marked ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Italics in Scripture quotations indicate author s emphasis.
Harvest House Publishers has made every effort to trace the ownership of all quotations. In the event of a question arising from the use of a quote, we regret any error made and will be pleased to make the necessary correction in future editions of this book.
Cover design by Koechel Peterson Associates, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota
Russ Crosson is published in association with the literary agency of Wolgemuth Associates, Inc.
8 IMPORTANT MONEY DECISIONS FOR EVERY COUPLE
Copyright 1989; updated edition 2012 by Russell D. Crosson
Published 2012 by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Crosson, Russ
Eight important money decisions for every couple / Russ Crosson.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-7369-4622-3 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-7369-4623-0 (eBook)
1. Married people-Finance, Personal. 2. Christians-Finance, Personal. 3. Finance, Personal-Religious aspects-Christianity. I. Title.
HG179.C7497 2013
332.024-dc23
2011048661
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
To all couples who desire to make money a nonissue in their marriages.
Acknowledgments
T o write a book on marital harmony and money management is indeed a challenge, and one that would be impossible for me were it not for my relationship with Julie, my bride of more than 30 years. Her love for God and unwavering desire to be a godly helper have enabled us, as a couple, to live out firsthand the financial principles and thoughts shared throughout this book. I m extremely grateful for her and her constant support and encouragement. I am committed to her for the rest of my life. We are both grateful for the saving work Christ has done in our lives, without which the power and ability to live out these truths would be impossible.
I owe a special debt of gratitude to Charles and Peggy McCreight, who, along with the young couples in their church in Sumter, South Carolina, provided the forum where this material originally came together. Charles and Peggy encouraged Julie and me. They prayed for us constantly as we undertook the challenge of this project.
Ron Blue gave me the opportunity to work with couples in the financial arena when he hired me more than three decades ago. Financial insights gleaned from Ron, as well as my other partners at Ronald Blue Company, are woven throughout this book. I am grateful these people are in my life.
The couples who read the manuscript and offered valuable input have had a tremendous impact on the finished product. Rusty and Colleen Reid, Baker and Vicky Jones, Clark and Holly Crosson, and Reed and Kristen Crosson deserve my special thanks.
To Julie s and my parents, Bert and Jan Harned and Lon Dean and Barbara Crosson -Julie and I are forever grateful for their presence in our lives. They modeled harmonious marriages and the proper way to handle finances for us. They have been an inspiration to us.
A special thanks to Bonnie Davidson and Molly Blass for their countless hours of inputting and responding to my time demands as this book came to completion.
Contents
Endorsements
Acknowledgments
Foreword by Dennis Rainey, CEO and cofounder of FamilyLife
Introduction
P ART 1: T HE F OUNDATION
1. The Purpose of Money
2. The Purpose of Marriage
3. Reasons for Marriage Conflict
4. Work: Blessing or Curse?
P ART 2: 8 I MPORTANT D ECISIONS
5. Will He Ever Come Home?
Decision 1: How Much Should We Work?
6. The Myth of the Working Mother
Decision 2: Should Mom Work Outside the Home?
7. The Checkbook
Decision 3: Who Pays the Bills?
8. Freedom in Control
Decision 4: How Do We Set Budget Amounts?
9. The Banker Is Calling
Decision 5: How Much Debt Should We Allow?
10. But It s Such a Good Deal!
Decision 6: How Do We Decide Which Investments to Make?
11. To Give or Not to Give
Decision 7: How Much Should We Give?
12. A Game Plan for Communication
Decision 8: What Is Our Strategy for Discussing Money?
13. A Woman s Perspective on Her God-Given Roles
Julie Crosson s Personal Story
The Ultimate Power Source
Recommended Resources
Living Expenses Worksheet
Notes
About the Author
Ronald Blue Co.
Foreword
by Dennis Rainey, CEO and cofounder of FamilyLife
A s part of the most famous address ever given on planet Earth, Jesus Christ taught about the importance of how we treat money:

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also...No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money (Matthew 6:19-20,24 ESV ).
Jesus warns us that our use of money is a reflection of what we value and what we re living for. It s no wonder that the use of money can reveal so many differences and create so much conflict in a marriage. Enter Russ Crosson to offer help and hope as you deal with money within your marriage. You ve made a great decision in choosing this book because the right man has written it. Let me explain.
Every book is a reflection of the worldview of its author. Russ s worldview transcends cultures and trends because it is based on the Scriptures. As a result, he s the right man to address how a couple handles money because he has the right foundation for his worldview, resulting in the right convictions about money.
My experience in working with couples for nearly four decades tells me that couples starting out in marriage today are in need of training about how to approach the issue of money. Most of these people seem to be biblically illiterate. As a result, they take their marching orders from the culture they live in. Russ gets this. He understands that if a husband and wife are going to experience harmony in their marriage, they must sing off the same song sheet. He also understands that every couple needs convictions about money from a source they can trust, and he patiently instructs couples from the bestselling book of all time-the Bible.
Professionally, Russ is also the right man because he has the right experience and education. This book is the sage wisdom from a man who has waded into the deep waters of finances with hundreds of couples. Since 1980, Russ has interacted with couples about their money-how they view it, invest it, spend it, save it, and give it. As a result, his perspective and counsel exceeds that of even the most prestigious finance gurus. So when Russ exhort