Can you believe it???
Neither can I. I’m still in shock!
Let me tell you how it all happened…
When Jason and I met, he was living in Anaheim and I was
living in Hanford. We met at a time when I was mid-semester at Fresno State and
tied into a new mortgage. It was impossible for me to relocate. So after 6 months
of a long-distance relationship, Jason made the sacrifice and moved to Hanford
so we could be together. We agreed to spend 5 years in Hanford and 5 years
wherever Jason wanted to go. Our whirlwind courtship spun even faster as we
decided to quickly marry and 6 weeks later found out Mia would be joining our
family. Two and a half years later Maddox came along. As he grew a little older
and we began down the path of discovering his autism and seeking out treatment,
our 5 year mark came and went and the plan of moving to SoCal was pushed aside.
Whenever we talked about relocating, I would look
at our finances and insist that it was impossible given our debt. So a few
years ago we started Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. We began a debt
snowball and started paying off excess bills. We were making pretty good
progress until I was laid off in March of last year. Then the idea of moving to a place more expensive seemed even more out of reach. With Maddox’s intense
program, it was impossible for me to get another full time job so I began working
part time from home and we eventually decided to move in with my parents for 6
months to save a little $ and pay off our last few bills. After Christmas, Jason and I started looking around town for a small house or an apartment to rent and nothing really caught our eye. Then one day in January, Jason sat me down and told me that he wanted to discuss moving again and wanted to plan it in the next 2 or 3 years. Very much to my surprise, I blurted out, “Let’s look into doing it this summer.” I still don’t even know where that came from! We talked about the possibilities of making it happen and agreed to begin praying about it.
Not known for his patience, my husband called his old
employer the very next day and had a job interview by that Friday. This is where
I began to panic! “We agreed to start praying about it, not job searching!” I
argued. But Jason just responded that we were not going to get anywhere unless
we started taking steps. After a major
panic attack, I decided to put aside my budgets and spreadsheets, forget about
MY plans and time lines and just got on my knees. I prayed for God’s provision
and guidance in making this major decision. When I was finally still, I
realized that I just felt peace.
My one misgiving that remained was Maddox’s program. We had
such a great program in place and I hated to disrupt him. It literally all fell
apart that same week. We completely lost all of our services the same week that
Jason was offered a job. I asked God to make the path clear and He certainly
did! So, we decided to step forward in faith and Jason took the job. Even
though I was on board with the move, the kids and I couldn’t pick up and go
immediately. Fortunately, wonderful family and friends provided couches for
Jason to sleep on until we could find an apartment and my parents helped me
keep my sanity.
It was several stressful weeks until we were able to reunite
our family. There was a lot to take care of before we could move, but God
carried me through it all. I witnessed His hand time after time as each matter
was resolved at the perfect moment. I was so overwhelmed with appointments and
paperwork to file, but managed to remain peaceful and calm through it all. We
received several financial blessings during this time as well that carried us through
the move and will continue to enable me to stay at home with the children for a
while. We found a great apartment in Huntington Beach and are excited about our
new adventure.
What a lesson learned! For the past 6 years, I have tried to
plan to make this move possible and it never came to pass. I budgeted and
planned and re-budgeted and saved and it always fell apart. On paper, it was
just impossible. I couldn’t make it work. I finally got out of the way and let
God take over and he made it all happen in less than 2 months.
Thank you Lord for your provision and for this amazing
opportunity for my family. I am continually amazed how you remove the
impossible and make the paths clear. Thank you for removing my doubts and fears
and for your gift of peace that passes all understanding. I pray for your
continued guidance as we seek out your will for our lives and for our children.
Thank you friends and family for all of your support and
helping hands. We love you all so much and although we are a little farther
away from some of you now, we will be back to visit soon!More blogging and pictures to come soon!!!
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