I have a brother-in-law (a younger brother to my husband) who has said before that if you regularly tithe, then your money will always be sufficient. I beg to disagree. If that was so, then God would be, pretty much, a slot machine, and I'd be slipping in coins on a regular basis. Well, we do tithe, but at the same time, often come up short in the bill-paying category. Sometimes God's blessings aren't monetary.
For your information, this is the same brother-in-law who used to say that you only have to pay the bills that stick to the ceiling when you throw them up in the air. Two strikes!
I say all that nonsense to say this: Gary's got work in the shop now, and his phone is ringing almost daily. This after a long, long spell of silence. A period of very few phone calls and little work in the shop. Dark times. Crying out to God times. Pulling out your hair and wondering what the heck is going on times.
Now, seemingly all of a sudden, work is a positive word. An active word. A possibility. And you know what? We've done nothing to deserve it. Haven't been more faithful, or giving. We've had no tricks up our sleeves. And that's all good, because if we could put our finger on what exactly happened to turn the tide, we'd put a bookmark on it. We'd take notes and tell all our friends. We'd make a fortune about how we know how to tap God's power.
But we don't.
It's all Grace. We did nothing but hang in there. We prayed, yes, and cried. Grew more gray and lined. But we didn't have to do tricks or dot all our i's. We only had to wait for God's timing. I still don't understand it and truly tremble at how things follow through. I want this magical time to stay with us, but it might not. Self-employment is scary even in the best of times, because things can turn in a moment.
Thankful for the work. Thankful that the designers and homeowners who have called are able to afford the business. I'm grateful for all of us.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
