Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! This week we are talking about an important topic, especially when talking about the importance of family. It is not the most popular topic but anyone who is married and starting a family know how important it is. Finances are a stressful part of any family situation and often lead to added stress and conflicts within the home. When looking to pursue a relationship further it is imperative to discuss your financial status and spending habits. The reasoning is because of the communication which needs to take place for how finances need to be monitored or implemented when having a family.
Personally, I have always struggled with the financial part of things. I have been working since I was sixteen when I was saving up for my mission. My natural impulse influences me to treat myself when I get my paychecks, after all I did work hard for the money which was going into my pocket. This is a behavior which I have been working on over the last couple of years and something I am really trying to address with the potential of starting a family of my own one day. The reasoning for addressing this behavior now is because when I start a family it is not about me anymore. The most important thing in my life will be my wife and my future children. Therefore, preparing myself financially and being responsible with my money is crucial to the development of my future family.
My future family and finances plays a major role in my reasoning for attending Brigham Young University. I was working in the substance abuse and behavioral health field back in Newport Beach, California. I was making really good money for my lack of an college level education and I was enjoying my life. I knew one day I would want to find myself an companion I could take to the temple. When pondering this decision through prayer and scripture study, I had a reoccurring conversation with my father replaying in my head. My father stressed the importance of the day when I would ask for someone’s daughters hand in marriage. He would remind me how the day will come when I will need to be prepared to tell her father how I will financially take care of her and our future family for the rest of our lives.
My experience consisted of watching a dear friend of mine getting sealed to her husband for time and all eternity. This sparked a fire in my soul to get my life in order and prepare for the next stage of my life. Since being at BYU I have become more confident in my future and what I can offer to another person. I would like to point out how although I am preparing myself for some big changes, my spiritual progression and testimony is growing on a daily basis.
My father taught me some important methods of budgeting and keeping my finances in order. Through my father’s experiences I feel like I was shown what not to do. My parents growing up would work overtime and wanted to make sure us children had everything we wanted, as well as were able to do all the fun family activities which would pop up. My mom struggled with addiction and was not working which put all of the financial responsibility on my dad. My family ended up falling apart, going through bankruptcy and our sense of a normal life was completely changed. Not only did my world change, but my parents divorced as a result of financial struggles, poor communication and other factors.
My father made some crucial changes when we moved out onto our own. He is a big fan of Dave Ramsey and his way of managing finances. I began to change how I would manage my money as well. We began to write down where every penny went from our paychecks. Credit and debit cards were dangerous because it was a lot easier to swipe a card than it was to get rid of physical cash. We implemented the envelope system, which consisted of us budgeting where every dollar went from out paychecks into our life. We budget things from bills, gas, food, activities, tithing, and what was left over would go into our savings account. In addition, it is important to set aside three months of expenses in case anything is to happen where you would lose your source of income. With Covid for example, many people were not able to work and having this backup would allow for less financial stress when looking for alternative forms of income.
In closing, I hope you take financial responsibilities seriously. Finances can be a reason for your family falling apart. I hope you can learn from my families experiences and protect your own. For the fathers or future fathers out there, I hope you teach your children the same lessons my father did with me. I promise it will bring your family and you all together. Until next time my friends!
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