As much as possible work on minimizing debts in your marriage, I personally advise couples to watch on their spending against their income. There are many items that you don’t need.

1. EFFECTS OF DEBTS IN
MARRIAGE
Discussing debt might not be the most desirable
of topics, but it is a necessary topic to ensure a
happy marriage. Some spouses avoid discussing
money problems due to a fear of being lectured
and the shame of having to admit that they
‘failed’ financially.
Kigume KaruriMonday, December 17, 2018 1

2. • Keep out of debt
• Keep out of unnecessary debt and thus avoid
the debt trap. Borrowing for a house or car is
one thing but taking on financial obligations
beyond the ability to pay is another. Psalm
37:21 says "the wicked borrows, and pays not
again." Once you are into debt, one loses a
portion of his freedom. As Proverbs 22:7
says, "The rich rules over the poor, and the
borrower is servant to the lender."
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3. • Debt can place an incredible amount of
pressure on a relationship, causing
arguments, rifts and frustration from either
party.
• Debt can bring big problems to your
marriage. Despite the potential for problems,
you can work through money problems, and
you'll find that you're a stronger couple for
working together.
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4. • Debt can place a huge stress on any
marriage. It creates a situation where each
spouse is forced to wrestle with questions of
security and priorities. It can also cause
husbands and wives to become deeply
frustrated with one another. If possible, take
some clear and definite steps to get out of debt
as quickly as possible.
• Debts can destroy your marriage.
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5. • Many marital problems can arise from debt.
You may struggle to reach compromise if you
can't agree on a way to handle the finances.
• Debt can also breed resentment if it's mostly
incurred by one person, but both are working
to pay it off.
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6. • Debts can stress so much to the extend that it
hinders communication and decreases your
sexual desire.
• With debt hanging over your head, you're not
able to save for other things. The key worry is
how to repay it. If it stresses you, it means
that there are very few things you can do.
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7. • The demands of the family are huge and if
you are not careful, all the priorities that the
couple needs to handle, may be affected by
the debts the couple owes.
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8. Keys to eliminating debts
• 1. Work together to eliminate or minimize the
debts.
• 2. Keep the lines of communication open and
to present a united front. Meet together and
lay everything on the table.
• 3. Decide on what you are going to do to get
rid of the debt. In most cases, it will require a
bit of sacrifice to get rid of the debt, but being
debt-free is a feeling that you both can enjoy.
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9. • 4. You can do careful budgeting, avoiding use
of risky loans, and resisting the temptation to
artificially raise your standard of living. If you
get an increase in salary, consider saving that
money instead of using it to.
• 5. Save a minimum of 10% of your income
every month.
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10. • 6. Before buying a house, purchasing a car or
just borrowing money, pray about it and seek
the counsel of godly people. They can help
you from making a lot of mistakes. The
reason so many persons don't seek counsel is
that they don't want to be told by someone
an intended action is unsound-they just like
to do what they want anyway.
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11. • 7. Don't sign anything until you check the
deal thoroughly first. Don't be hurried into
any deal. The worst deal in the world is often
the one in which a person is rushed into
signing. The best offer in the world can wait.
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12. • It is essential in a marriage that spouses
should be on the same page when it comes
to money and money issues.
• Stop putting yourself into debts. While there
may be unavoidable exceptions, such as
medical emergencies, do your very best to
avoid any purchase or spending that you
cannot afford.
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13. • To help with this goal, maintain a small
emergency fund.
• If debt isn’t managed carefully, then
eventually it takes its toll on life in general.
Sacrifices have to be made somewhere along
the line.
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14. • Once debt goes from being manageable to
being out of control, the fear factor can really
make or break a marriage. All of a sudden,
those luxuries that you miss having become a
thing of the past and real life financial
problems start to come forward.
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15. • Often debt doesn’t become serious until it’s
too late and the damage is done, so
recognizing the warning signs that your
finances are out of control is the first step to
getting out of the danger zone. The next step
is to make sure that both of you fully
understand your current finances and what
you’re doing to clear or minimize the debt.
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16. • Financial disagreements are the most
common in a marriage. Too much debt can
sink a couple’s finances.
• Live a life of contentment. You do not need
every thing that you want.
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17. • Paying off debt is a team effort once you are
married. If you and your spouse have debt on
your hands, sit down and honestly discuss
how to deal with it together.
• Set up means and ways of paying off the debt
starting with clearing the small debts first
and then prioritizing how to plan for the
larger debts.
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18. Other Effects of Debts in marriage
• 1. Meeting the daily needs of the family would
not stop because there is a debt but the
quality and quantity would be affected.
• 2. There are many essentials in the home that
will be forfeited.
• 3. Personal differences in spending, saving and
accounting for money would be imminent.
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19. • 4. Anger will be a major issue to handle.
• 5. Tensions and ill-tempered arguments over
little things. There would be resentment and
self-pity.
• 6. The couple pulls out in different directions.
• 7. Communication breaks down. Differences in
money habits begin to surface and blaming
each other erodes affection.
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20. • 8. Denial. It is not uncommon to experience
denial when debt is overwhelming. Moreover,
you may ignore the debt until you have no
other recourse, but to deal with your money
issues such as: creditors calling, denial of
credit, bounced cheques, legal actions, etc.
Once outside forces enter the situation, you
can no longer deny that you are in debt, which
can cause both fear and relief.
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21. • 9. Debts can cause panic and apprehension
and bring many couples to the brink of
divorce.
• 10. Your health may be affected by debts. You
could even have depression and ulcers. Your
emotions could also be affected.
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22. • Debt is crippling marriages
• As much as possible work on minimizing debts
in your marriage, I personally advise couples to
watch on their spending against their income.
There are many items that you don’t need. I use
the acronym P.O.D.
• P-rioritize
• 0-rganize
• D-iscipline
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