WOWEEEEEE!!!
Never ever never ever never underestimate the power of God.
Tommy and I decided to sell the house. It is a small 2 bedroom, 1 bath home, 17 miles from our kids' school and his work. We believe we need to be closer to that area and that the rest of us deserve to use the bathroom on occasion, not just the teenager. So on the market it goes. We have looked at quite a few houses already and really have our hearts set on one in particular. We do know that we have to sell ours first. The waiting game has begun.
To top it off it is tax season!! GRRRRRR. I never enjoy tax time. We try every year to adjust our w4 so that at the end of the year we aren't hit with some lovely taxes owed to the even lovelier government, but it rarely works in our favor. Here is where it gets good . . .
Tommy listens to a Christian radio station every morning on the way to work. Every morning this past couple of weeks the radio host has challenged its listeners to say one simple prayer, adding nothing to it. He prayed, "God surprise me." That is it, but get this, Tommy only did it once!! One time, because he is obedient like that. Just kidding, kinda. He didn't tell me about this prayer until after I did our taxes.
On a cloudy, rainy, super cold and blustery day, I sat preparing our taxes. Okay, okay, it was sixty and sunny with no wind which is weird for Oklahoma. I think you understand why I used the first description though. I am itemizing like a mad woman, filling in those grueling tax forms and praying the entire time that we were going to be blessed. I could here the music from Jaws creeping into my mind, but with some lyrics. "Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest." Seriously people, once you get to know me that won't be so odd. Anyway, back to the task at hand. I finished the forms and was SHOCKED! So I checked them again, and again, and again. Three more times I looked at the numbers. Then I hollered at Tommy and said, "You are not going to believe this!! We don't have to pay in a dime this year! But honey, that isn't the unbelievable part, we are getting enough back to pay for the roof, and to pay off my student loans!" I think he thought I had been possessed. I think he was hearing the Jaws music too. I have an overactive imagination though, so he was probably just surprised.
Then he told me about the prayer. All this time I thought it was my skills. It was God!! Only he can produce miracles and that is exactly what it was.
We will pay off my student loans, put a new roof on this house, and all we will have left besides the mortgages is the car! The car was actually in our plans to pay off first, God has a way of changing our plans for the best though. The amount we will receive back this month is almost on the money to pay off those two things, and we don't believe that is a coincidence. We will still pay off the car in the next few months. We are super excited to do that, as it will be a blessing to others as well (I will fill you in on that another time).
Our church is hosting a financial peace university, and Tom and I get to be involved. We so want others to see that by following God's plans, everything falls into place the way it SHOULD be.
The Bible actually says, The borrower is a slave to the lender. Proverbs 22:7 I don't want to be a slave, I want freedom. Freedom to live like no one else and give like no one else.
Speaking of giving. We received a note in the mail. I am in tears as I type this, overwhelmed at the love of others to give. They sent us a handwritten note, blessing us for staying on track, praying for us, encouraging us to keep with our goal for debt freedom, and writing US a check to help. WOW. I don't know that there are words to thank people like that. How do you thank someone who, although they barely know you, they give unselfishly to you? I send them my prayers, thankful that God has sent us yet another gift and surprise, and knowing that God will give it back to them more than they could imagine.
So here's to those that give, and here's to those that receive, but mainly here's to those that glorify God because of it all!!
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