We have been offered some work in a couple different ways.... God's fingerprints are on them because these aren't things we went looking for! I am doing some work at another church to help with their preschool ministry just one night. It will give me a little cash to help with groceries next week. Our son, Parker, will be working a little for a caterer which should help him with spending money. We feel terrible, not being able to give the kids allowance right now and so it is nice that they can make some of their own. And, Mark might be doing a little work for a friend in a few weeks... again will help us with some day-to-day expenses. God continues to provide!
A friend has been getting some extra produce from a place she frequents and so we are trading bread for produce. That works out nice and helps us both!
Please continue to pray for Mark's job search. It is hard to find jobs for him to apply for in his field..... and even harder to find any in the St. Louis area that he hasn't already applied for. It still seems like that door is staying solidly shut.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Thursday, September 14, 2006
The Battle is Not Yours, But God's
I asked Mark to write an entry this week, because he had a blessing to share....
Today is my day to get to make an entry. Yesterday morning, during my prayer/quiet time with the Lord, I specifically asked Him to speak to me directly through my study and to bring a passage to my attention that spoke to our situation. The passage He gave to me was 2 Chronicles 20:15-17:
He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”
Later on in 2 Chronicles 20 the story continues with Jehoshaphat and his army not having to lift a finger in the battle. The enemy forces turned on each other and not a man was left standing. There was so much loot and plunder for Jehoshaphat and his army to collect, it took them 3 days to gather it all from the fallen enemy.
I wasn’t really sure what the Lord was telling me. I underlined the specific lines that stood out to me. And those passages all made me feel good and comforted. He basically told me that He had things under control and it’s not my problem to worry about.
One part of what I was hearing that I wasn’t sure of is the part of the story where Jehoshapahat is told that Tomorrow (now today) was when something was supposed to happen. I didn’t know if God was speaking to me through this passage in general of if there was going to be something special happening Tomorrow (now today). So all day, I’ve been wondering if something was going to happen. I didn’t know if it was going to be a battle with a blessing at the end, just a blessing, a job, or nothing at all. So in response, I’ve simply gone out to face today paying attention and looking. Well, sure enough God was telling me something special was going to happen today. Not a job offer, but simply a very nice gift that has relieved much of my immediate financial stress.
It truly is a blessing to know that God had already prepared a blessing for me and had it in the mail at least a day before I even came to him. And He was even good and kind enough to tell me when I was going to receive it. Our God is an awesome God. He has confirmed once again that our “jars of flour and oil, will remain un-empty until the rains come again.”
Friday, September 08, 2006
Loads of bread and other blessings!
The bread ministry lady called and said she had LOTS of bread and asked me if I might come get as much as I could use or share. When I arrived, I could see that God had been working, once again!....
hamburger buns -- my daughter had asked if we could have hamburgers a few days ago, but I checked and didn't have any buns in the freezer.... rather than going to buy some, I decided to wait a few days to see if God provided some... and He did!
Crescent rolls -- I just boiled a chicken and was thinking of having chicken salad today, but didn't have the right kind of bread for it.
Muffins -- we are low in breakfast cereal and now I don't have to buy any breakfast food for at least a few more days.
SHARING.... we've prayed that God would allow us the privilege of sharing with others, just as people have shared with us over the last three months. We were expecting that privilege when Mark got a job again, but this was an opportunity to share bread with some people we know who have financial strains, too. I thank God for that.
We also received some produce, home-grown plums and almonds... gifts from friends and family.... one of the kids commented that they thought we'd be hungry sometimes after Dad lost his job, but we really haven't. I told him that was because God promises to take care of us if we seek after Him.
Our living God is living still.
hamburger buns -- my daughter had asked if we could have hamburgers a few days ago, but I checked and didn't have any buns in the freezer.... rather than going to buy some, I decided to wait a few days to see if God provided some... and He did!
Crescent rolls -- I just boiled a chicken and was thinking of having chicken salad today, but didn't have the right kind of bread for it.
Muffins -- we are low in breakfast cereal and now I don't have to buy any breakfast food for at least a few more days.
SHARING.... we've prayed that God would allow us the privilege of sharing with others, just as people have shared with us over the last three months. We were expecting that privilege when Mark got a job again, but this was an opportunity to share bread with some people we know who have financial strains, too. I thank God for that.
We also received some produce, home-grown plums and almonds... gifts from friends and family.... one of the kids commented that they thought we'd be hungry sometimes after Dad lost his job, but we really haven't. I told him that was because God promises to take care of us if we seek after Him.
Our living God is living still.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Being Thankful
We've been blessed with produce from gardens of friends and family over the last several weeks and it has been wonderful. We received some "regular bread" again and some hotdog buns (I had some hot dogs in my fridge but no buns to eat them on!) from the bread ministry. It is funny how little things like that can be such a blessing! I suspect that we should always live our life like this.... looking at our dinner table each night with thankfulness. We always "say thanks" at dinner time, but do we always mean it?
Mark also received a card and gift money (birthday), again, providing something we needed at the time we needed it. Parker's August birthday gifts also allowed him to do some fun things that he wouldn't have been able to do otherwise, and he got a mowing job!! The shepherd group outings at church and youth events, etc. always cost something and so it is very good that he has some to use.
Praising God for His provision!
Mark also received a card and gift money (birthday), again, providing something we needed at the time we needed it. Parker's August birthday gifts also allowed him to do some fun things that he wouldn't have been able to do otherwise, and he got a mowing job!! The shepherd group outings at church and youth events, etc. always cost something and so it is very good that he has some to use.
Praising God for His provision!
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