One of the most difficult questions everyone has to ask is, "How do I balance my family and my job so I'm both supporting my family financially and supporting them while in their presence?" Great question. If you're asking this, you're on the right track already. So I posed this question to a well-known servant of Jesus named Joe Stowell at lunch with him and the other '09 Harvest church planters. He's an instant illustration guy and here's what he said: "There are only a few people in your life who will be on the train with you your entire life. Build into those people. Many others will get off and on, but don't be fooled into spending too much time on them because you'll neglect your primary passengers for temporary ones." Ahhh, thanks Joe. We've got to keep our priorities straight and teach the kids the need for both while modeling good stewardship of our time at home and at work.
Jesus has something to say about this that is really challenging and profoundly freeing, "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:26). Jesus just listed the closest earthly bonds and said we should "hate" these compared to himself. When Jesus is first, all other things we worry about will be added unto us (Matthew 6:33).
It is not until we properly live for our master that we can matter at anything else.
So, if you get offered a raise of $10k a year that requires 10 more hours per week at work ... but you could get a bigger house and a nicer car and, and, and shop here ... it's probably better that you decline that train car and stay in the family car. Otherwise, you risk having one leg on each car with the deadly train tracks beneath you.