heyzeus wrote:KyCardinalFan wrote:How does your father-in-law's wife view the situation? Does your wife have a good relationship with her?
It seems like the wife should be more of the brow-beater and concerned than Mrs. heyzeus. I would think her future will be more impacted as well as their teenaged kids. Perhaps Mrs. heyzeus could speak with the wife and say, "I'm here for support if you'd like to speak with him on the issue." Perhaps they can team up and offer suggestions or a plan of action. Often a parent is ashamed of poor money management or willing to adopt a plan, but doesn't know where or how to start.
Mrs. heyzeus doesn't have much of a relationship with her dad's new wife - they only got married a few years ago.
But over the weekend, she talked to her dad about her worry about saving for the future. His response was that he knows he should try saving, but everything will work out according to God's plan. It's difficult to argue with that, without resorting to things like "well, maybe God wants you to put aside some money for the future, too"
My immediate response would be that God tells us that it not monetary things we should cling to, so he should clear out two sheds of junk. Also, that God expects us to care for one another and he is neglecting the responsibilities of caring for himself and his current family.
BUT... I, instead, did a quick search for "Christian book, finances" on Google and found this snippet from the following site. The second point maybe being relevant to your wife:
How is Christian money management different?
How is "Christian money management" different from anybody else's money management? To a large extent, it's not. What works, works. But some Christian doctrines loom very large:
God owns everything and we are just His stewards. Our property isn't really our own and isn't a measure of our personal worth.
Spiritual people aren't supposed to ignore money. It used to be widely thought that if your mind was on God, your mind wouldn't be on practical matters; you would just "live by faith." But in fact if God has given you property to manage, you have a duty to manage it. People who try to live without thinking much about money — but who do this as prosperous members of the middle class — usually end up entangled in debt.
We are held to a higher standard of honesty because God is always watching. Ethics isn't just whatever you can get away with.
Money does not buy happiness, and material acquisition is not the purpose of life. There is much to be said for the old-fashioned virtue of contentment — the determination to make do with what you have, without getting overextended, realizing that if you aren't happy now, you still won't be happy if you simply acquire more money or possessions.
Marriage is a permanent commitment. This doesn't sound like a financial issue, but it is. Secular counselors such as Suze Orman often advise couples to break up when they disagree strongly about money. For the Christian, that is not an option. Nor can marriage be viewed as temporary in the first place.
There are good points made on this site, even though I find a few to be a little extreme. Your wife may want to do some reading, gather information for debate and discussion and make one more stab at it. But overall, if your wife were to take away that argument, it sounds as though your father-in-law is basically lazy and irresponsible by hiding behind, "God will provide".
http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/chrmoney.html
