WHO CONTROLS MONEY FLOW AT HOME
Bisi Adewale
The decision of who is to control the money at home has been a silent war in many homes. This shouldn’t be the case if we allow the Spirit of God to lead us. Let me open your eyes to how money could be controlled at home, just take your time to check the right one for you.
- DIVINITY CONTROL. Please don’t ever forget that God is the owner of the money in your home. So whosoever controls money in your home should do it in truth, love, openness, kindness and in the fear of the Lord. God is the real ‘controller’ of money in your home. Don’t ever neglect Him.
- DELEGATED CONTROL. Since God has delegated the family authority to man, it is expedient that man oversees or controls it. When the man controls the money at home, he should not be wicked by spending lavishly on himself and his extended family while the wife’s extended family suffers. This is totally wrong and it is a terrible way to be a man and leader at home. I met a couple some years back. The man was working in an oil company; earning his salary in six digits but his wife was a teacher earning a meager salary. At the end of the month, the man will collect the woman’s salary spend it the way he likes in addition to his own while the woman has to beg before she can get the daily transport fare to her office. This is oppression and abuse of power. It is totally wrong and God is not happy with this kind of behaviour. Always remember that your position is a delegated one, you will give account to the Lord one day.
- CONSENTING CONTROL. At times the man may give the wife his consent to control the family money. This can only happen if the man is a secure man, in a home full of love and trust. The beauty of this is, the woman will be able to channel the family resources to buy things at home without placing demands on the husband. This is what we practice in our home. My wife is a chartered accountant, very meticulous in the area of money, very faithful and trustworthy. I don’t see why I should bother my head with what is being spent. She handles the budget, manages the account, buys things for the home in such a manner that you will think she studied family finance in the University. “Lucky you,” you said? But it did not happen in a day. We learned over time and came to the conclusion that she can handle it. There is nothing bad for the woman to oversee the family money if you are truly one, but this is not a law. In fact, the woman should never struggle to be in charge. You need to prove yourself before your husband can hand over this sensitive part of the family into your hands. “The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil”. Proverbs 31:11
- UNDERSTANDING CONTROL. This has to do with handing over the family income to the better hands at home for management. This entails understanding each other’s strengths and weaknesses. A spendthrift or extravagant partner will do the family a whole lot of good if the prudent partner is allowed to handle the money. The spendthrift partner can work on his or her weaknesses.
There should never be a battle over who controls money at home. If both of you are mature, you will know the best way to get it done. If you keep your communication line open, you trust and love each other, the issue of who should control money will not even arise.
