Trying to see it, Norman’s plans

Mama pressed me pretty hard yesterday to let her go to West Virginia so she could make the trip over to see Jonas – our herbalist friend in McConnelsville, Ohio – and then come back with Grandma and Grandpa when they drive down the week of the 19^th. I was not the least thrilled with the request, especially in light of the things that are happening on our life right now. She mentioned it to Grandma and was being pressed by Grandma to come and help her pack, visit her uncles, etc.

They had offered to pay for the ticket so the trip would ostensibly be no cost to me. Mama asked me to pray about and see if the Lord would give me peace. I did consider it for several hours but finally I said no – for a myriad reasons. To her credit she did not push further after I said no, but it got me to thinking how to convey to Mama how life changing the loss of this job really is for us.

After I had been home an hour or so she brought the subject up and I asked her to consider how her life would be impacted if she lost me right now. Not how it would be impacted emotionally, but how it would be impacted financially. In a very real sense, when I walk out of my office next week having been laid off from this job I will die - financially speaking. I will have no further employment income, no promise of employment, no budget. The financial world is a cold world that does not recognize promise or potential, only actual.

I know God will somehow supply all our needs but I need to understand just what that really entails; because at this moment I am on the “faith” side of that equation rather than the “seeing” side. For most of our married life the Lord had given me and Mama very good employment and I have been able to make our finances work in hard times because there was the promise of the next payday. When all else failed I could go to the bank and borrow against the potential earnings of my employment. This is a new wrinkle for me – and for Mama, Grandma, Grandpa and Norman – who have always assumed I could find a way to make the finances work. I am struggling to get it right; in God’s eyes and in the financial world’s eyes.

When I was coming in from watering the plants and trees last night Mama was talking to Norman filling him in on my negative response and updating him on several other little issues. I heard them talking about a mobile home and how nice Mama thought it was. I had no idea what that was all about but as it turns out, Norman and Seth have agreed to rent the same property Grandma and Grandpa rented when they first moved to Bowie.

The owner is discounting the rent with the promise from Norman to remodel the mobile home and keep the property neat. Norman sounded excited about the arrangement. The owner is very excited about the promise. They will begin to rent the place next month. I am not sure how soon they will actually move down but Mama thinks it will be by year end.

Changes, they are a comin’.