April 19 update

So far so good. Thankfully we haven't had any major problems this week. Christy still worries a bit about feeling so good. I think when you hear horror stories about being sick for three months and bed rest for the last six months you begin to think all pregnancies are like that. So, when you don't experience that you start to worry that you're not "normal" or that something is wrong. Please pray that Christy can relax and enjoy feeling ok.

Our first real doctor's appointment is May 3rd so we should know a bunch more then.

Now for something that's been on my mind. Sometime around the fall of 2004 I had prayed that the Lord would put us in a place in which if He didn't come through then we wouldn't make it. At first thought that seems like a crazy prayer but I believe being in those situations challenges our faith and can serve to increase our dependency upon Him. While being at the mercy of God can sometimes be a scary place when we can't see the road ahead we know that it is also the safest place to be. I believe every person needs to experience occasional seasons where if the Lord doesn't come through then you will fall flat on your face. As Hudson Taylor said, "Either the Lord is Lord of all or not Lord at all."

We soon found out that the Lord loves to answer these kinds of prayers.

In January we had a major car repair expense totaling $4,000 then we find out in April that we are having a baby. Thankfully we had the money to repair the car but it put a major dent into our finances as you can imagine. Christy and I have always had the goal of her staying home with our kids once they came along and we have planned our budget to accommodate that by only using my income to live off of. We also had the goal of being completely out of debt and we have been using her income to work towards that goal. Thankfully, in Aug/Sept. we will be completely debt free allowing us the freedom for Christy to stay home. However, herein lies the next hurdle the Lord will have to see us over.

My job, while steady and a great work environment, does not pay very well. We will be able to live off of my income but it will be extremely tight. We are praying that the Lord provides a better paying job allowing us a little more cushion. I don't want to take a new job simply because it pays more. One of my great professional passions is to help people with their money so a job in some sort of financial services field would be ideal.

Next, hurdle/questions. In order for Christy to keep her teaching license she has to complete 15 hours of graduate studies by August. She started on this last summer and is two classes shy of that going into the summer. It is possible for her to pick up those two classes but our dilemma is whether or not its worth it since she does not plan on returning to full-time teaching. Unfortunately, she does have to work in the fall for insurance purposes but she can file for a one year extension on her certificate to see her through that time. We hate to essentially waste the time and money already spent but would that time and money be better spent this summer preparing for the baby?

Next hurdle. Our current living situation has been great for us as a newlywed. It is a spacious apartment close to everything in town. However, we have to travel up fairly steep stairs to enter the apartment and have to go outside and down two flights of stairs to do laundry. Obviously, this will not work once we have a baby and even once Christy gets greater with child. Again, our current financial situation does not allow us to pay much more than we currently are paying in rent but we need to find something that better fits our needs.

It seems that situations exist in almost every area of our life where the Lord must come through for us to make it through. I truly believe He will walk us through this time and that our faith will be greatly increased as a result. Can you point to a time in your life where the Lord had to come through for you to make it? If so, I'm sure you can attest to the joy in truly KNOWING that the Lord cares for you and will see you through. If not, perhaps you should pray for the Lord to place you in a similar situation but be prepared. He loves to answer those prayers!