One of the top predictors of divorce is the level of disagreement between spouses over money. Apparently this is a better predictor of divorce than even such problems as infidelity, abuse, and addiction. One wonders why this is the case, who is to blame, and what to do about it (or at least this one does so). Why are so many marriages today falling apart over money issues?
In a word, covetousness, which the apostle Paul describes as idolatry (Col. 3:5). Our culture (early 21st century United States) is, unfortunately, rampant with covetousness. On the other hand, this has been the case with pretty much every culture through human history, so why should we expect to be any different? Contrary to popular belief, poor people are just as prone to covetousness as are the rich. Our wars are fought over covetousness (James 4). This is not to say all sides in a war are fighting because the are covetous (there is such a thing as a just war when resisting evil), but when a war is being fought you can be assured the “root cause” is that someone wanted to take something (land, oil, gold, shipping lanes, slaves) that belonged to someone else.
A common (and mistaken) meme among many alleged “Christian” marriage counselors is that women do not succumb to lust, which is, rather, a masculine fault. Now bear in mind that Paul attributes lusts (including those against nature) to women in Romans 1. Lust, including sexual lust, is a path of temptation for both genders. The mistake lies in thinking that since women experience lust in response to different stimuli than do men that women are not subject to temptation from sexual lust.
All of which is said to say this: Men are (sexually) attracted to women with certain physical attributes, whereas women are often attracted (sexually included) to men with certain financial characteristics. Protest all you wish, but denying the reality of the nature of the world around us will not help to overcome that world and the temptations it holds.
okrahead 