Chuck Bentley - Money Problems, Marriage Solutions: 7 Keys to Aligning Your Finances and Uniting Your Hearts

2017 by
CHUCK BENTLEY and ANN BENTLEY

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Scripture quotations marked ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible copyright 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

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Names and details of some stories have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

Edited by Elizabeth Cody Newenhuyse

Interior design: Ragont Design

Cover design: Dean Renninger

Cover image of piggy bank copyright 2017 by maxicam / Shutterstock (125032343).

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Author Photo: Alyssa Scott Photography

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Bentley, Chuck, author.

Title: Money problems : marriage solutions : seven keys to aligning your finances and uniting your hearts / Chuck Bentley with Ann Bentley.

Description: Chicago : Moody Publishers, [2017] | Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017024074 (print) | LCCN 2017033274 (ebook) | ISBN 9780802495792 | ISBN 9780802415875

Subjects: LCSH: Marriage--Religious aspects--Christianity. | Money--Religious aspects--Christianity. | Wealth--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Classification: LCC BV835 (ebook) | LCC BV835 .B4435 2017 (print) | DDC 248.8/44--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017024074

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We dedicate this book to our beloved children and grandchildren:

Charles Henry Bentley IIIHankand Lindsay Bentley
Charles Henry Bentley IV
Miles Lewis Bentley
Etta Liora Bentley
Rye Lynford Bentley
Todd Wagner Bentley
John Christian Bentley
Luke David Bentley

May God bless you and your families. We pray that you will benefit from the lessons we learned from our mistakes and, more importantly, our victories.

You are our greatest earthly treasure.

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IT IS IMPOSSIBLE to prosper when there is war. You must seek peace first; then you will prosper.

Thats what a wise senior business leader counseled me when I asked him for advice to help me solve a problem I faced in our company, a problem that was dragging down the growth of our business. His insight immediately opened my eyes to the solution, and I went and made peace with my adversarial customer. Once that was accomplished, our energies were refocused on growing the company. The advice worked.

But more importantly, I realized that this approach has direct application to our marriages. Oftentimes, we are passivelyor aggressivelyin conflict with our spouse. We have not sought to make peace and thus are failing to reach the full potential of our marriages because of the lack of unity. This lack of unity directly relates to our financial struggles and impacts our every decision or inability to make a decision together. From this insight, I began to study the powerful benefits of a couple that is at peace with each other, unified and making financial decisions together. Here is the bottom line of what I learned.

Marriage is not the cause of our financial problems; in fact, it is the very best solution to our financial problems. Surprised? Shocked? You shouldnt be. This truth is supported by study after study.

Research indicates that married people experience less poverty and more prosperity than any other living arrangement, including being single or living together. I have provided extensive support for the many benefits of marriage in the appendix: A Case for Marriage and Families. But there is also a great paradox: money is often cited as the greatest area of frustration, fighting, arguments, stress, and unhappiness, as well as causing the breakup of many marriages. In other words, it is the root source for many mini-wars in our homes.

We have set out to address this tension, which is also an often hidden opportunity. Our desire is to help you flourish financially and, more importantly, to rediscover your love for one another so that you can work together in unity. To do so, we must be frank and transparent about the challenges you will face and the steps needed to overcome the fighting and frustration that rob you of your ability to work together.

Right about now, youre probably expecting me to tell you to cut up the credit cards, get out of debt, and save an unrealistic amount of your income. Not so fast. This is where our approach is unique. We want to help you to join your hearts and minds togetherto stop attacking