Blessings

I apologize in advance that this post ended up a little lengthy. I have prayed about this post for several days and really didn't want to write it right now. But it's God's story, not ours, and some of you may be blessed in an awesome way by reading this. So, pull up a chair and take a minute (or 3) to be blessed.



Some of you are aware that Jason and I are facing a tremendous challenge right now. Due to our government's inability to create a budget, several military cuts have been made. This has had a direct affect on our family, resulting in a major cut in the amount of work available for Jason. Jason does not have a full time job in the military, but because they are constantly flying people and things all over the world, he has been able to stay busy flying several days a month. He typically would fly/work 20-25 days a month. With the military spending cuts, a lot of flying has been put to a stop and he is now being guaranteed only 2-4 days of work each month. We are so heartbroken, not to mention nervous about our future. Jason has been the sole provider for our family the last five years (something he is so proud of), so this has been a big blow to our family. I wasted no time in getting my paperwork in order to sub and I've already worked several days. It is not the ideal situation for our family (and I miss my kids so bad it hurts), but I am able and willing to help our family through this time. We are adjusting to this new situation, but choosing not to get comfortable with it. Jason is sending his résumé to as many places as we can find that are currently hiring pilots.

This has been a major challenge for our family, filled with heartache, anxiety, and a stress that is indescribable. Our first week with Jason home resulted in many tears and worry. We were both sick over this situation, but clung to God's promises that He holds our future. That first week also happened to be Revival at church and our evangelist for the week, Dr. Jim Diehl, spoke God's words, offering a glimpse of hope in our situation. As the weeks have gone on (we are getting ready to start our 4th week with Jason out of work) we are given constant glimmers of hope and God is continuing to provide. We know that God is walking through this with us and providing opportunities along the way for places we can grow closer to Him and strengthen our faith. We are really keeping our eyes and ears open for these opportunities of growth and praising God along the way.

I originally thought I wouldn't mention any of this on the blog until maybe it was all over and Jason is settled into a new career. But then some things began happening that are blessing us beyond measure and I feel God's prompting to share it with others.

It started with me noticing some things here and there that God had provided, before we ever knew about losing work. Jason didn't get paid the entire month of January. I'm still not 100% sure why, probably some miscommunication in the finance department. When he finally got a paycheck in February, it was for a larger amount than normal (for obvious reasons). By this time, we seemed to be out of most of our "staple foods" and starting to run low on toiletries. I went to WalMart, expecting to double my usual total, but went over what I had budgeted by a hundred dollars. I immediately felt sick to my stomach and called Jason to apologize and see what he wanted me to do about this. Those who know Jason well will not be surprised to hear that he didn't see what I was so shaken up about. He quickly calmed me down and reminded me that I bought all things that we need (eventually) and to let it go and not worry another second about it. Fast forward a month and we learn that Jason has suddenly lost work. We are beyond amazed that God provided a way for us to buy ahead in February so that our needs in March would already be met!

While my mom was visiting in February, I jokingly asked her to potty-train Dakota while I was running Jaxon back and forth to school. My mom was able to stay with Dakota the entire weekend she was visiting, while I carried on with my normal tasks of cleaning, putting meals on the table and running errands. By the end of the weekend, Dakota was completely potty-trained!! We were so happy for her and so grateful for my mom's commitment to sticking it out with Dakota. Now, a month later, we don't have to worry about the burden of buying diapers or pull-ups. What a financial relief for us!

We know that many people are praying for us right now. We feel those prayers and sense God's presence more than we ever have. We are so grateful for the kind words many of you have given through email, facebook, cards, phone calls and texts. We truly feel blessed despite the circumstances we are facing. Some friends from our former Sunday School class in Kansas have particularly felt burdened to help us by giving. Typically when a situation like this might happen, these awesome men and women would come up with plans to pitch in and help, be it watching kids for free or taking meals to families, but because of the distance, they could not go-to one of their normal plans of action. Besides wonderful messages of hope and prayer, a few of these families have felt God's prompting to give financially. Please, let me take a moment to say that we are completely blown away by this. We are not ones to ask for help in a "normal" situation, so we definitely would not expect this sort of gifting. This is not something we have asked for, or even hinted towards. It is simply just some wonderful folks who have been blessed by God and choose to share those blessings with people they love and care about. So, last week we received a very nice gift card in the mail to WalMart. Just a day or two before this gift card came, we were discussing Dakota's upcoming 3rd birthday and not sure if we should get her a gift now or wait until money isn't so tight. God answered that question for us by sending this gift card. We are so thankful to be able to buy our little girl a gift and her big brother will be able to pick out a gift for her too! Then a day or two later, another nice card came in the mail, accompanied by a check. When I first glanced at the check, I realized it was for a very generous amount of money that made my heart skip a beat. Then I glanced at it again and noticed that it was for an odd amount of money. I mean, any time I have given money for fundraisers or pitching in for a gift or something, I always give an even amount. Usually it's multiples of 10's or 20's. But this was not what I would consider a normal even number. I showed Jason, and after he wiped the tears of gratitude from his face, I asked him what he thought of the amount. He shrugged and said, "Well what did we tithe this month?" I immediately pulled up our bank statement online, and discovered that this check we received was for the EXACT amount (to the dollar) that we tithed for the month of March. Now, if you would back up with me a bit...you can imagine that writing our tithing checks this month were not the easiest. I'm not trying to sound rude, I'm just being honest. As I sat down to write the checks, I nearly pleaded with God to let us keep 5% this month and we'd give him an IOU for the other 5% when we're in a better financial position. It's not that the money wasn't there. It was, I just simply thought He would want us to hold on to some of it for the future. You  know, for the "just in case" scenarios of the unknown challenges we may face. And just as quickly as I asked God his thoughts about IOU's he reminded me of these lyrics, "Many things about tomorrow, I don't seem to understand. But I know Who holds tomorrow, and I know Who holds my hand." So, we prayed over those checks and gave them. And isn't it just like God, to find a way to give that money right back to us. As if to say, "Thank you for being faithful and giving what is mine. Now here is that money you wanted for some bills."

I'm sorry this post ended up so long. I truly pray that each of you reads this and is blessed and encouraged. In such a dark time for Jason and I, where it's so much easier to be down, we are finding God's promises in so many unlikely places. I wish I could end this post with great news about God pulling us through this, but we're still in the middle of the storm. It's ok though, because we serve a faithful God who is walking right along side us and already knows the awesome ending to this story He is writing!