Friday, March 21, 2008

Praising God causes burnt soup!!!! ;-)

Yes, it really does!! Especially if you're me!!
I had been trying really hard not to stress about the finances. Jeff's employer announced there would be no more approved overtime. Apparently, the employees had been abusing the privilege of overtime and caused the company a lot of expense. So in an effort to scale down the paychecks (betcha these people didn't work during regular hours, just after hours because the pay is pay and a half!!), no more overtime. Jeff, of course, isn't a slacker during regular hours, but he'd stay after to help the other departments get their work done (his would already be done before closing time). This gave us an additional average of $500 a month which was really nice, especially since we have TWO car payments for the first time in 11 years, spend money taking David to PT twice a week, and have to purchase a passport for Stephen, pay back a loan, etc. This was taking a toll on me, but I didn't tell anyone about it. I just repeatedly told God I didn't know what to do.
Today, I started some tomato soup. It was all that I had on a shelf in an almost-empty cupboard. I was stressing a bit over what I could possibly serve my family for meals all weekend. I prayed that somehow we'd get some food, and fast! Peanut Butter and Jelly can only last so long. While my soup was warming on the stovetop, I ran out to get the mail. I came back in with a quizzical piece of mail from our mortgage company. I thought, "Oh great! What do we owe now??" Actually, I was pretty sure it was a notice that the company was being bought out by a more stable company or something. No, inside that envelope was an answer to prayer. Like a reward for my patience (yay! I'm virtuous after all!!). Seems there was a huge overpay on our escrow so we were reaping the excess in the form of a refund. The beauty of it all is that the check is in the EXACT amount of every penny I'm short to complete the financial commitments from now until next payday! If that's not God in all His goodness, strike me with lightning!! Tears flowing freely down my face, it was all I could do to drop to my knees in extreme gratitude. So extreme, that I stayed down there for quite a while, much to the confusion of my 3 children in the room. First thing I did when I got up off my knees is text Jeff and tell him there was a huge PTL he was going to love. He asked for details so I shared. He was so happy (I knew he would be). So, immediately, I'm online to double-check the budget and figure this thing out. I decided I would go right away and deposit it. So I'm walking through the kitchen and smell something funny. SOUP! Not just soup, but BURNED TOMATO SOUP!!!!!!!!!!!! I have NEVER burned soup before!!! LOL! I had this stuff bubbling over and I'm guessing 1/3 of it was gone by the time I remembered it. I have no clue how much time had passed since I put it on the stove, but wow! Haha. So that was my lunch...burned tomato soup...and my reward afterwards is cleaning that monster of a mess that bubbling over made on my recently-shined stovetop!
But strangely enough, I don't care. If I have to eat burned soup and clean up a big mess requiring a lot of elbow grease just because I took the time to Praise my Jesus, I'll do it! I'll do it over and over, in fact.
So that's how I learned that Praising God causes burnt tomato soup! LOL
But I'm so blessed, so thankful, and so astounded that He loves me that much! Why??? I will never know here on this earth, but I'm glad He does! :)

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