encouraging words take ten combo

you might have noticed that i missed yesterday’s “take ten” post (or maybe you didn’t. no matter). it was a busy day, i’ve been a bit down, feeling a bit overwhelmed…..etc. it’s probably a good thing i didn’t write yesterday’s post because what i had in mind wasn’t very uplifting – not that all of my posts need to be uplifting but there’s no need for pity parties either!

every morning, little man and i tell each other 3 things for which we’re thankful. i’m going to borrow that idea, expand it to 10 and combine it with today’s “encouraging words wednesday”. deal? it’s gonna be a long one but here goes:

1. the past week or so, we’ve been broker than broke. had to take a huge chunk of money to get hubby’s work vehicle on the road so he could do his thing. sunday rolls around and so does the offering plate. usually, i’m very disobedient with my tithes when i’m worried about money. this time, i stepped out on faith and put in our tithes. wouldn’t ya know, two days later, God put that money right back in our account – plus a little bit more – from a very unexpected sale via my etsy shop! amen? amen.
2. it’s a rainy, gloomy day today. gray as far as the eye can see. but guess what? all this rain feeds our (very shallow) well. so – at least for now – we have all the water we need.
3. maintaining a blog can be difficult. sometimes you feel like you’re talking to yourself and you wonder if anyone really cares. yesterday, i was convinced that it was no big deal if i missed that post since my readership is pretty low anyway. well, i do know of one person who reads my blog religiously – especially my “take ten” posts. she says she learns more about me each time. she also happens to be one of my best friends. you’d think that what i write on my blog would be nothin’ new to her. but it is. we’re busy moms and don’t always have a chance for in depth discussions. i’m grateful for even just one friend who wants to learn more about me. thanks, kris ;-)
4. today, little man asked me “am i being a good boy this morning, mama?” i told him he was and asked why he wanted to know know. he said “because i love you and i want to make you happy.” oh my. need i say more?
5. my feeling of being a touch overwhelmed stems from trying to maintain my home and my mother’s home while she’s in the nursing home for rehab. the nursing home needs all kinds of paperwork or she’s going to have to make a pretty hefty financial contribution for her stay, she needs clothes to wear during her workouts, the carpets need to be cleaned at her house before she comes home, i’m waiting for a call back from a local agency to find out if she’s eligible for financial assistance on some needed repairs, her cat needs food, the litter box needs to be changed, her bills need to be paid. and on and on and on……but guess what? about three weeks ago she was on a respirator. she couldn’t breathe on her own. she wasn’t strong enough to move on her own at all. the doctors thought the cancer had spread and was causing all the issues. now, she’s tooling around the nursing home in her wheelchair, doing reps with dumbbells during rehab, she’s handling the chemo like a champ and the cancer has.not.spread. halleluiah!
6. i’d gotten a little frustrated with the money hubby was putting out lately - $48 for this conference, $200 for that weekend retreat, $100 for this christian men’s golf league……but then i remember that my husband was not a Christian when we married. now, he’s doing everything he can to have a closer relationship with Christ. and again, i say amen.
7. speaking of hubby – and his business – we were (and continue to be) positive that this is God’s direction. but we weren’t sure where the work was coming from. hubby met with someone who’d hired him pretty frequently in the past……praise Jesus, he’s got enough work to keep him busy all spring…..
8. and…conversation with hubby: “i’d really like to get a power washer. it would be good for my business.” me: “how much are they?” hubby: “well, a good one can run a few hundred dollars.” me: “uuuummmmm…….”. later that day, conversation with my brother: “how’s hubby?” me: “good. just started his business up again.” brother: “oh yeah? i’ve got three big power washers in my garage and i need to make some room. tell him he can have one.” ………seriously? my God is an awesome God.
9. i may (or may not have) mentioned that i have graves disease. it’s presently in a remission of sorts but i take medication daily. we lost our family medical insurance, i’ve got about 10 pills left and not enough dinero for an office visit. i explained the situation to my endocrinologist and she called in another script for me. thank you, Jesus.
10. after taking the time (and it did take some time!) to write this post, i am feeling SOOO much better :-)

and we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
~romans 8:28

the purpose of “encouraging words wednesday” is to provide encouragement to someone who may need it. well, i needed it. for those of you who made it through this post (no pictures, even!!), thank you. i pray that these words might be an encouragement to you today.