Trying to help my parents get their financial life in order. Just found out today that my mother and step-dad give $300-$500/mo to tithing (his daughters church where her husband is the Pastor). They're in debt, struggling financially and my mom is trying to figure out how to work MORE.
If they "paused" giving to tithing for awhile, they'd be debt free within ~3 years (and I can help teach them to stay out of debt). If they don't pause NOW, they'll be in debt for a long time. How do I convince them to do what is best for themselves financially so that down the road they're in a much better to give money to the church if they wish. I also feel like my step-dad does it out of fear... fear that their life will fall apart if they stop (even temporarily) and fear of how his daughter and her husband will react (they've proven to be somewhat judgmental and hypocritical) which, from what I know, aren't the reasons one is supposed give to tithing.
How do I help them understand this from a financial logical viewpoint and not a religious/emotional one? I even suggested giving $50-$100 for now or giving time instead of money.
I know this is hard for me because I'm of a different belief system. I don't believe bad comes to those for not giving money to the church. I've never given a dime to any religion and I feel that I'm still blessed in this life, have lots to be thankful for and any bad that's occurred financially or otherwise has been a result of a bad choice I've made that I've then learned from. I'm not encouraging them to be greedy or anything, just that they don't give in a way that continues to hurt their current and future finances.
Submitted January 10, 2017 at 12:02AM by JDD88 http://ift.tt/2iyEyjB
