Shaping Me Part 5: Coming Home

OK, so it's time to get back to this story, huh? Sorry for the delay--here's part 1, part2, part 3, and part 4 if you need a refresher! We had the big Girl Scout camping trip this weekend and then there was the recovery from the big camping trip and then there was "find the house under all the junk" that had to be done. So, I've been busy--not with really glamorous things, either.

Just after Little Bit turned 2, I began working at our church. The job was from 8-12 and daycare was just down the hall--and cheap! Pretty soon afterwards, we moved Sweetheart from her public school 20 minutes away to the private school at our church. It was so nice to put everyone in the car in the morning and all drive to the same place together. I had never done anything like this job before and I rather enjoyed the peace and solitude that came from working in my own office all by myself. Very different from teaching! It was a bit disturbing, for someone who swore they would never turn out to be their mother, to find themselves sitting in their mom's old office doing her old job. Oh well.

So I still had the afternoons to be a homemaker, had much more involvement in raising my daughters, and we could pay the bills again. The job was a blessing, no doubt. Looking back I cannot believe God's timing. At the time, of course, I had no idea what was coming next or when the job would end. They were talking about expanding the private school through 5th grade and I just assumed there is where we would stay. As it turned out, I began praying for the opportunity to homeschool, to be a homemaker. I had no doubt in my mind this is what the Lord wanted. Everything had worked together for the last 2-3 years to change my way of thinking and convince me of how family roles work and give me a vision for raising our daughters that was nothing I had ever even considered.

The only question was HOW? S was working his regular job, getting paid a little for being the youth minister at our church, and I was bringing home a little money. Those 3 salaries were working out just fine. We couldn't do without any of them. When I prayed, I felt like I was asking for the moon. I mean, we were so blessed! I was working part-time...not full-time. Sweetheart was in a private, Christian school...not public school. My hours were flexible, I had so much to be thankful for.

But I told you...I wasn't satisfied anymore. By the world's standards we had it great. Even by most Christian's standards! But I wanted to help my husband by keeping our home. I wanted to raise our daughters and train them for the Lord. So I prayed.

Then one day a guy my husband worked with just walked into his office and asked him if he would be interested in a job. He interviewed for it and the salary he was given covered all 3 of our former salaries. This is unheard of. This is absurd! He didn't do anything to look for this job. It was just dropped into his lap. I just knew it was an answer to prayer. It was May when he took the job so we were able to save Sweetheart from the dreaded summer daycare (one downside to my job). I came home last June. God is good! I think I literally walked around with my jaw on the ground for weeks. I just could. not. believe. it. This time, I had trusted God. And...without any "help" from me---He had provided. How about that? :)

And right after that the private school fell apart. If we had stayed, Sweetheart would have had to return to public school. And right after that, Little Bit's tics got bad. If we had stayed she would have had to deal with the stress of daycare every day (and she really didn't like "school" to begin with). S quit youth ministry at the end of the summer and we were, for the first time ever, a one-income, wife at home, homeschoolin' family. TALK ABOUT CHANGE, PEOPLE!!!

Next time: An Update