The Gift of Freedom

When R & I first married, neither of us had great-paying jobs. We were blessed to get a great deal on a house R's employer was building, and moved into a new home 6 months after our wedding. I still remember getting that first electric bill (it was the dead of winter) and calling my mother in tears. I was afraid we'd gotten in over our heads. God provided everything we needed in those early years, but we still found ourselves hoping R could land a job at the plant. We just knew if he did, our lives would be so much better. No more financial struggles. No more economizing. No more worries.

Well...nearly 15 years later, I can see how naive we were. Instead of gaining financial freedom, we sold ourselves into bondage. Don't get me wrong. R's job has been a blessing. It's also been a curse.

~The more we earned, the more we spent. When I look at our annual income, I'm astonished and ashamed. I'm sad that we haven't been better stewards of the resources God's poured over us.

~Swing shift has stolen so much that we'll never get back. R has missed CJ's recitals and ballgames, family gatherings, and time with friends. The three of us have managed well, but there have been many, many times that we've wished R didn't work this crazy schedule.

~My husband has not enjoyed his job. At times, he's loathed it. I'm in awe of the sacrifices he's made in order to support us.

All the while, we were comfortable. We had food, clothing, shelter, and just about everything else our hearts could desire. We've traveled to Paris, New York and Boston. We've taken advantage of the things R's job has afforded us. We wouldn't have made a move.

But God...He's decided it's time to bring us out of the bondage and into a new beginning. He's blessing us with a chance to get rid of what's been weighing us down and to change our money habits. The hope of a future without shift work. The opportunity for R to find a job he loves. Sound familiar?

and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey... ~Exodus 3:8 (ESV)