More Blessings

Well I'm behind on my blogging again (surprise, surprise) but I want to catch you up and let you know of God's many blessings over the past week or so!  Last week we received another box of some diabetic supplies:  Test strips (which are very expensive), lancets, and alcohol wipes.  A friend sent us a $25 gift card (Thanks LG!), and anonymous friends of my parents sent us $300!  Wow!  Why does the faithfulness of God always amaze me?  We're His children and he is abundantly taking care of us.!

This week God provided us with a blessing of $250 cash!!  Also, a $100 gift card to Walmart and $50 to the movies so John and I can go on a date!!  Dates with my hubby have been among the first things axed as we've tightened our belts.  What a blessing to have such Godly and generous friends in our lives.  The thing that blows my mind is that none of our 'angels' are rich; they have even given sacrificially!  What a wonder to be part of the family of God!  We are truly blessed.

And as we're blessed, my heart remains heavy for people such as these who are literally starving to death in Uganda.  This week I hope to give back in some way, and pass some blessings on to those who really need it:  Orphans and widows in the far reaches of the earth who have no hope of food, clean water, and the basic necessities of life.  Will you join me, even sacrificially?  Here is one way you can help!  Click here!

The Mysterious Email: Another Chronicle of God's Faithfulness

Here is another amazing story about how God is providing for our family amidst unemployment:

A few days ago we received this anonymous email from someone who so cleverly created an email address just for this purpose. The email read:

Dear John and Kirsten,

We heard about John getting laid off and your concerns about medical insurance. We are praying for you and your family each and every day. We wanted you to be reminded that God loves you and will continue to be your provider! And to know that you are loved by many many friends. We mailed a package to you today that should arrive by Saturday or Monday. We had planned to put this letter in the package, but forgot to bring it to the post office. Please use the contents of the package to help fuel your job search and the money orders to help with medical coverage or anything else you choose.

With God's love and ours

WOW!!  We were so excited and waited with anticipation for our package.  Then it came:

Four packages of our FAVORITE coffee and $600 in money orders!!!  

Plus, we had received another $100 in the mail that day for other things.

That's $700 plus coffee in one day!!!

God is so good!!!  We are so blessed to be children of the most generous Father!

And because God has blessed us, we are able to pay some forward by helping here:  

Formula for starving babies in Ethiopia

Will you consider helping too?  Even facing unemployment, we have more than we could ever ask for or imagine.  We have so much more abundance than these babies dying in Ethiopia.  Even if you can only give $5, please please do so.  You could save a life!!!

Praise be to God!

***A special thank you to vogelfriend@gmail.com for being the hands and feet of Jesus.  We love you dearly and are so thankful for you!!  xoxo

Chronicles of God's Faithfulness, Part 2

It has been one week and two days since John was laid off from his job due to the current economic situation in the U.S.  In this short time we have been blessed beyond belief by the Lord and our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Some of these things may be out of order, but I want to recount everything the Lord has done for us so that for years to come the stories of God's faithfulness to our family can be passed down to our children, grandchildren, and generations to come.

We were invited to a close friend's birthday party and had to decide whether or not to buy a gift or to save our pennies wisely.  Our friend knew of our situation and assured us that no gift was necessary.  My sweet children, instead of pouting about not buying the gifts they had in mind, found gifts to give from their own collection of toys.  The thing that impressed me the most was that they picked from their 'best' things; things that they knew that their friend loved to play with when she came to our house.  It warmed my heart to witness their generous spirits and desire to give their 'best' to others.  Then, at the party, not only were the presents a big hit, but the grandma stuck $40 in my pocket.  This is a lady who works hard for her money and doesn't have a lot of it.  I felt so incredibly and truly blessed and humbled that day.

Another day I went into the school office as I usually do.  One of the receptionist's husband had been laid off also and she knew my anxiety over simple things like lunches for my kids.  Four kids packing four lunches and snacks for five days a week really adds up:  Juice boxes, snack packs, etc.  Did I mention that my kids can EAT?!  Anyway, she pulled me aside and offered that since John was laid off my kids could get free lunches.  I had never thought of that and part of me hated to swallow my pride, but my kids are now thrilled to get yummy lunches every day.  Their school does not have yucky cafeteria food, but the Booster Club brings in Golden Corral, Chick-Fil-A, Papa John's, and Subway.  It's all like a slice of heaven to my kids and beats peanut butter and jelly any day!!  Another huge blessing to not have to buy that stuff!!

The other day I went to the grocery store with a friend so we could get some great sales.  Some of the things were buy two get three free.. awesome!  Anyway, when it came time to check out, my friend insisted on paying for my stuff since we got so much stuff for such a small price.  My friend is a single mom and doesn't have a lot by any means.  Of course I argued with her about it but she said that God had blessed  her and she wanted to pass it on, or 'pay it forward', so to speak.  Again, I am humbled and awed at how God is providing so much for us!!

Last night at OFY there were hotdogs, buns, chili, cereal, and milk left over.  My friend there insisted that I take some extras home.  Let me tell you, there is more food in my fridge than there usually is!!  Praise the Lord!!  And this is just a little glimpse of what 's God been doing... Just wait until tomorrow!!

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Chronicles of God's Faithfulness - Part 1

As sad and as hard as it was to hear that John was being laid off, we have never doubted for a moment the our Father would provide for us.  The Bible says that when we accept Christ's gift of forgiveness and eternal life and turn our life over to Him, that He adopts us as one of his very own children.  You know that we love this picture of adoption and how Sam is loved immensely  like a child of my own womb.  That is the same picture that God has of us.  We become HIS children.  He is our abba Father (abba is translated as "Daddy").  As an earthly father nurtures and takes care of his children, so God takes care of us, his children.

God knows and is sympathetic toward our anxiety about medical stuff.  We shouldn't be anxious, but present our requests to Him as we've done.  This is the first of many ways that God our Daddy has answered our prayers:  I contacted a Christian medical supply company about supplies for Jake's insulin pump.  Of course, it all sounded too good to be true and I kept waiting for the 'catch'.  I thought I'd believe it when I saw it.  Then,  a couple days after John was laid off,  we received a box in the mail.  In the box were three boxes of infusion sets (retail $110 per box), three boxes of insulin cartridges ($81.25 per box) and three boxes of IV prep ($14.25 per box)  That is $616.50 worth of insulin pump supplies for FREE.  We didn't even get charged for shipping!!  

I cried when I opened the box.  My heavenly Father is so faithful.  He knows the hairs on my son's head and He will take care of him!  I am awed and humbled!!  Thank you Jesus!

Stay-tuned for more God-stories while we're on this unemployment journey!  You will be amazed!  <><

To insure or not to insure, that is the question.

To bring everyone up to speed, John got laid off from his job last Thursday.  His position was eliminated because of the economy and the fact that his company has lost a lot of money in the past year, which they are trying to recoop by laying people off.  When we heard this news, we were initially shocked (his branch was profitable for Q1), sad, and scared.  What would this mean for our family?  I cried for a few days, not out of panic but I felt sadness, like a death had occurred.  I still have some anxiety but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is in control and He has us in the palm of His hand.

John has already interviewed with one company.  He says it went well but there is not a position open immediately; that it will take time if he is offered the position.  I am blessed to have the smartest, most hard-working husband on the planet and he is not laying down in defeat.  He has made a lot of contacts and done a bunch of networking and has a bunch of friends in the industry looking out for him.  Again, we know God has a plan!!

The thought has dawned on us that maybe God has freed us up to do His work.  Maybe he'll ask us to 'put our money where our mouth is' so to speak.  That would be awesome and we would be thrilled to have the opportunity, but as of yet, God has not given us any solid directions.  John heard from the Lord, "Just feed my sheep".  We don't know what that looks like at this point, but we are seeking Him on a daily basis.

In the meantime, we wait upon the Lord to take care of us.  Our biggest stressor at this point is our medical bills and coverage.  As you may know, we have two children with potentially life-threatening illnesses that require extensive medications and medical equipment.  Thursday, April 30th, is our last day of insurance coverage.  We can purchase a cobra policy for $12oo per month.  Right now, we don't see how we'll be able to pay that money- that is almost a house payment.  But we don't see how we can go even one month without medical insurance.  In the next three weeks Sam has appointments with the neurosurgeon, orthopedic, and physical therapist.  He is also supposed to be going to get his feet casted next week for his new leg-braces.  Friday, May 1st, Jake also has his quarterly hospital visit with the endocrinologist and team.  These amount to thousands in medical bills.  So, we're praying for clarity about what to do.  Do we spend the money on cobra?  Do we cancel all these appointments (some took 6 months to get)?  Do we keep the appointments without getting the cobra and risk a high medical debt?  We don't know the answers at this point, although we know God does.  We are seeking Him and asking for direction.  Will you join us?

Thanks!  We love you all! <><