Isn't God Amazing!

I gave my word yesterday that I would write about the latest development in my God trust walk. It's a long story but I always try to follow through on my committments, so here you go Vickie:

I am such a do-it-myself person that I have a really hard time asking for help, both from people and from God. You'd think eventually I'd learn. Especially since God has done some pretty cool stuff in my life. But I still struggle.

After a lot of internal debates back and forth a month ago, I turned the mission trip money issue over to God. He's shown he can provide and if we are meant to go, He will make a way. We've had so many subtle reasurrances from God that we are supposed to go that I feel confident that we are following His direction. And as He promised, He is providing generously. Brittney and I have so much joy in our hearts when we open each letter, many with notes of encouragement, or glance at each check from the people God has placed in our lives who are willing to help.

So every week, hundreds of dollars are funneling through me towards the Guatemala trip. I'd be lying if I said it's not exciting! Meanwhile, in the past month, our family has an issue with daycare costs. Because Sophia used to be in foster care, we can apply for daycare assistance while I work. It's a mound of paperwork but it enables me to remain at Headstart. The assistance pays for Sophia's daycare for the hours I work - Monday through Thursday from 9:45am-1:45pm. Which is practically perfect for our family.

Then the daycare provider changed her rules and said that Sophia couldn't come unless we paid the full $95 per week. Steve and I talked it over and decided that we would just have to pay the difference of $50 to $60 per week. Since I'm not working very many hours and I don't make much per hour, we would be spending most of what I make on daycare. But I love my job and it's good for Sophia to have a few hours at a good daycare. Plus we decided with as many times as I'm running other kids to doctor's appointments, various therapies and meetings, we could utilize the daycare more often. For example, if I needed to run Anthony to his therapist in Sioux Falls or Brittney to her physical therapy appointments, then Sophia could just stay at daycare since we were paying for it anyway.

Then the rules at daycare changed again and it was decided that the kids have to be picked up by 5:15pm every day. Steve isn't done at work until 5pm at the earliest and on the days that I needed to utilize the daycare for Sophia in the afternoons, we were having trouble getting her picked up on time. We could always get her by 5:30pm because that allowed enough time for Steve to finish up at work and get across town or have Grandma Sandy, who is also off work at 5pm, to pick up Sophia. But 5:15pm was cutting it too close to many times. And of course, it's a late fee if you're not there by 5:15.
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Meanwhile, the daycare assistance state people decided that instead of the usual 6 months of being qualified, they bumped it down to 2 months because I worked for two different employers during one month of the fall and they weren't sure how to process that correctly. I could still re-apply but I would have to wait until the two months were up and then re-submit new paperwork with just the one employer and then wait for the state to process the new papwork all over again. Which, they assured me, would enable us to requalify and it would be retro-active so that we wouldn't have any gap in the daycare coverage.

Which would have been fine. However, our daycare wanted their money immediately instead of waiting for the state. So for the past month and a half, I have had to write a check each Friday for $95. Which puts us WAY over budget normally, not to mention right before Christmas and an improptu missions trip!

By the way, I've since put in Sophia's two week required notice at her daycare and made other arrangements that aren't going to cost us more than I'm earning.

So as I'm watching all this money pass through my hands for the missions trip and praising God for it, I'm having a little pitty party because I only have $20 in my purse and I need to decide what's most important for the next two weeks, gas in my almost empty van or milk & cereal.

On Saturday night, I finally wised up and decided that if God could provide for the trip, He could provide for our family also. (Again) So I visualized myself with a basketball and passed it over to God. "Here God. You can handle it. I don't want to stress about it any more." I'll do what I can and You'll do what I can't."

Done.

Sunday morning, I was juggling my bible, my Bible study workbook, my teen parent group study book, my phone, my purse and my coffee. I asked Taylor to run downstairs and grab my bag to put everything in so I could head to church. Instead of my normal bag, she brought up my larger disney bag that I hadn't used since my Colorado trip.

It was completely empty except for the front zipper pocket, in which I found a bank envelope containing my leftover cash from my summer trip. Because of added car expenses, hotel, utilizing my debit card and being crazy busy with six kids and a husband when I got home from the trip, I had completely forgotten that the cash existed.

The amount of cash was within a few dollars of the amount we'd over-spent for daycare!

Isn't God amazing!
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