Frugal: Foundations and Future


Okay, let's get something straight right off the bat, my husband is WAAAAYYYYY better at handling the finances than I am. Budgeting was an unknown word until I met him. I was just glad to be able to meet monthly bills--life seemed great!! He, on the other hand, had more vision, more forward thinking. "Stacie," sweet Husband says to me, "we should work on paying our bills off, not just meeting the monthly payments. We also want to save up and budget what we will spend." Say what?!?!?!

I must say that 11 years ago, at the beginning of our marriage, that did NOT sit well with me at all, considering the financial hardships I encountered as a young girl. After all my childhood experiences, life was good in my book if you could pay your bills on time and then go and buy whatever you wanted with the money left over. At any rate, I did not fully submit to the vision, the purpose, the cause, my husband's wishes. . .whatever you want to call it. I didn't "get it" and I fought. . .HARD.

Now, I didn't make any "crazy" purchases, I didn't go get into any debt, I didn't go and buy something without my husband's approval. But in my heart--I was so not on board!! I didn't spend my money wisely all the time and I learned many, many tough lessons.

Fast forward through many tears, through the Lord growing me up, through the Lord opening my eyes to understand my husband's vision, through my husband's words, his example, his teaching me. . .fast forward and I'm beginning to see God's hand in it all.

If I had not learned to live modestly when we were a 2-income household, how much harder it would be when I stopped working to stay at home. If I had not learned to live modestly when it was just my husband and me, how much harder it would have been to raise 4 children on one income. Why did I fight so much? Sometimes I wish I could rewind and do it again.

But God is so good and kind and gracious. He's shown me what obedience to Him, by submitting to my husband, can do. The Lord has shown me how to trust in Him when He gives my husband a vision that I don't understand. The Lord is showing me the legacy that will be left to our children: one that says spending lavishly does NOT denote love or one's worth; one that says from the heart is better than any pricey gift there ever is; one that says earthly treasures can never measure up to the eternal treasure that awaits us.

God has given me strength and resolve to resist temptation to spend outside of our means and I am so pleased to be able to honor my husband in this way. {I don't think I could have uttered even half of this sentence years ago!!}

I apologize for the rambling of thoughts. This was just on my heart!

Linked with:
I Live in An Antbed

Comments

  1. Dear Stacie,
    This is beautiful! Simply beautiful!! I would love it if you might consider linking up on Friday in the "Pages in Our Heritage of Faith." :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, Anne.
    You're so sweet! See you on Friday. :)

    ReplyDelete

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