Giving Takes Us Straight Into the Heart of God

I was sitting in the McDonald's drive thru this morning, as I do many mornings.  I was thinking about the vehicle in front of me with a trailer that had a zero turn lawnmower on it.  I am very grateful for the lawnmower we have AND I'd like to make the task of lawn mowing a little easier for my husband.  We call our current mower the "Red Devil" for a reason.

So while I was waiting to get to the first window to pay for our breakfast, I said "God, I want a zero turn for DP."  I know that if I want something, all I have to do is ask.  God is my Papa and He owns the cattle on a thousand hills.  The World is His and everything in it.  Not only that, but He wants good for me and every good thing I already possess came from Him.  So I wasn't afraid to tell him what I wanted for my husband.  What I was about to find out is that He (God) wanted something for me.

I've been really stressed lately about work stuff.  We're building a business and there are alot of things that need doing that I don't know how to do.  It also feels like things are moving at the speed of light.  It's really easy to get in the weeds when you've got marketing and operations and finances and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah - all of the things.

In my Spirit, in the deep, quiet place of me, where there is no noise, God impressed on my mind to pay for the car behind me.  I said "ok".  It took me by surprise but I agreed because I knew it was His leading.  When I was done at McDonald's and I pulled out of the drive thru, I was at complete peace.  All of the work stress I had been feeling lately disappeared and in that moment, nothing mattered that I had been so worried about. I knew my life had a higher purpose and I knew that God was taking care of it all. 

 I am convinced that giving takes us straight into the heart of God and that's a place I want to be.

I Don't Want It Anymore

Six months ago I wanted a new purse.  I have a very nice one that I got from our daughter-in-law for Christmas 5 years ago.  It's a good quality purse so it is very structurally sound and will probably last another 15 years.  But I was bored and the purse is looking a little scuffed.  It's the kind of purse that can be repaired, so I've done that once already too.  I wanted to replace it with an equally good quality bag and the same brand and that would cost a couple hundred dollars.  I told myself that I would splurge on a new purse when the car was paid off - kind of as a reward for the hard work.  And I would do it with no guilt  because let's face it, a couple hundred dollars is a lot of money.

Then a couple weeks ago, I got an email from a ministry we support whenever we can and they have an online shop of things created by artisans in poor countries.  They had a purse that I thought I would like equally, was 1/2 the price and would provide 63 meals to people in Haiti.  Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!  This cause means so much more to me than the name brand I like for the purse. So it was settled, I was going to buy the purse from Feed My Starving Children.

With help from family, we paid off the car yesterday. (the crowd goes wild!) And what I found when I went to put the purse purchase in our next budget was that I no longer even wanted the purse.  The one I have is just fine.  And when I look at it, it reminds me of our daughter-in-law's generosity.  Paying off the car in less than 8 months was not something we did on our own.  To borrow a phrase from my Mom, "God did the heavy lifting".  And in that process so many things shifted in our lives in ways I want to last.  One of those things is seeing the volume of money that can pass through our hands and now, because we have no debt except our mortgage, we can give so much more.

90 Days of Needs

I love a good money challenge, which my family dreads, by the way.  We've done exactly 3 this year.  Currently we're doing "90 days of Needs" to pay down a car loan at warp speed that I agreed to, but has kept me obsessed on its repayment for the last 3 months.  I HATE DEBT.  Let me say it again...I.HATE.DEBT.  If you're a Dave Ramsey fan, imagine me screaming that into a microphone like Dave Ramsey's radio callers when they do the debt free scream.  I HATE DEBT!!!!

Anyway, almost 2 months ago, I was inspired with the idea to start a 90 days of needs challenge so any extra money we saved could be used to pay off the car faster.  The gist is, we're focusing as much as possible on purchasing only what we need.  It's always eye opening when we do this.  I've discovered that we can convince ourselves we "need" alot of things.  I "need" a cell phone... $1200 of cell phone on the $75 per month plan?  Or would the $100 phone on a prepaid plan get the job done?  I "need" a dishwasher because mine broke.  Well... I've got running water and 2 hands, do I really?

Now before you write me off as a deprivation promoting loony, this is not to say those things are bad or wrong in any way.  My point is simply that if you've got a financial goal that seems like a stretch, looking at needs versus wants could be a great place to find some extra cash.