If you would have told me a year ago that things would be as tight financially for my family as they are right now, I don’t think I would have believed it.  I can’t remember a time in my life when I’ve been stretched as thin as I am now- even counting the days when my husband’s and my income was 1/3 of what it is now.  As I watch the news and read the papers, I do find a little comfort in knowing I’m not alone.

Several months ago we felt God was calling us to move to California for my husband to pastor a church, so we began to prepare for that move.  We put our house on the market, and paid off all our debt (except our home).  When we left Missouri, our home still hadn’t sold, so we got a rental in California, and continued to pray that we’d get a call from our realtor telling us that our home in Missouri had an offer.   After about two weeks in California, we realized that this wait may be long.  So we crunched the numbers and realized that though we barely had enough for groceries, we could ward off foreclosing on our home if we could stay within a very tight budget.  So we committed to that goal, and cut every extra expense out of our life that we could.

It started with me.  I decided to forego getting my hair highlighted at the beauty salon, and had my acrylic nails taken off.  I also decided to begin clipping coupons for groceries (which I had never done before).  Then, we had the talk with our children.  I explained the situation, and told them that we were going to have to pull together, and it was requiring all of us to sacrifice some of the luxuries we had gotten used to.  I told my teenage daughter that she was going to have to turn in her cell phone.  She was very disappointed, and spent a few hours on the phone that night letting her friends know that she would no longer be calling or texting them.  My 12 year old son, Cameron, was quiet the next morning, and I asked how he was doing.  He said, “I’m just thinking about what I have that you might be able to sell on e-bay…I might have some things that are valuable.”    And though it turned out that nothing he had was really worth selling on e-bay, the thought was so moving to me.

The next night I realized that we still had many weeks of summer left, and I didn’t want the kids to be bored, so I started to look for things we could do that wouldn’t cost us anything.  We started playing board games, having movie and popcorn nights in front of the t.v., going on walks together, going swimming together, washing the cars by hand, and inviting friends over.

What I started to experience was unexpected.  I expected to feel completely overwhelmed by the financial strain, but instead I found myself experiencing gratefulness for the opportunity to draw closer as a family, and to draw closer to God.

Instead of costly activities and entertainment, I have re-discovered the joy of simply talking with, listening to, and laughing with my husband and children.   And with more time at home, and a realization that this situation is completely out of my control, I’m relying more than ever on my faithful and trustworthy Lord.  I am continuing to learn what trusting Him really means.  And I’m committed that regardless of how tight it gets, I won’t cheat God on my tithes, offering, or time.

I don’t know how long we’ll be in this financial situation, but even if our house sells soon, there are many things I won’t change with our new way of living.  It’s been good to remember that the best things in life really are free.