Unfortunate Assumptions

I have recently been seeing and hearing many comments about a subject that bothers me. Comments like "you are on cash assistance and drive an Escalade?" or "Look at her, she is paying for groceries with food stamps and has a Coach purse." The latest thing I saw was posted on facebook. It went something like this. "You are on foodstamps and can afford an iphone, sounds legit." I have a serious problem with this. First of all, I would like to say that yes, I am aware that there are plenty of people that take advantage of the system. But can we please remember why that system was put into place? It was to help people feed and provide for their family in a timly fashon when thier financial situation took a turn for the worse. Again, I am aware that there are loop holes that people may find to get more than they are supposed to. Or simply decide to live off of the government. But can I just say, what if you are judging some of them when you dont know the whole story? What if you are just assuming that they are getting help from the government and using it poorly?

Lets take a look at what could actually be happening. The woman with the Coach purse that is checking out at Meijer with food stamps, did you ever think that maybe that purse was a gift?

Or the family loading into the Escalade that uses cash assistance to pay their bills, may have lost their great paying job and are responsible for making the payment on their car loan?

Or how about the woman using foodstamps while she talks on her iphone? Perhaps her husband died and she is trying to take care of her 4 kids.

And might I point out the crazy amount of money it costs to cancel that iphone contract...how in the world, if she can't afford groceries, could she pay that $300 cancelation fee?

I am not ignorant to the folks out there that live off of our tax money, I get it. But don't be so quick to judge. Why not consider that most people are good willed people. Consider what could be happening in their lives and be glad for them that there is something set in place to help them in this difficult time.

With the ever-rising unemployment rate, it amazes me that there are so many people out there judging others for not being able to find a job. Lets become aware of what is going on around us and be a little more sympathetic. Stop assuming, you KNOW where that goes!

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The Time of Tests

This year my husband was offered a new job 2+ hours from where we were living. Now this new job would be with the same company that his twin brother works for, and near all of his immediate family. We prayed all the way from turning in his application to the day it was offered to him that God would close every door along the way if it was not His will. Every door that opened, we walked through. The job was offered with the criteria we needed. So, he took the job and moved over ahead of the kids and I. As I packed our entire house by myself with 3 children roaming the grounds, you can imagine my attitude. Pure frustration. We found renters for our home quickly. What a blessing! However, 2 days before the move, we found out our renters were backing out. So, what do we do? With our house completely packed up, we decided to make the move anyway.

It was difficult to say goodbye to my family and friends, but this had all worked out so far, so we made the move. Loaded up all of our belongings and made the 2.5 hour trek.

We made the move in March. Anxious to save money and find a place of our own, we began looking around. my sister in law and her husband were so gracious to take us in until we could get settled. The kids LOVED it! The week after moving we got a call from our realtor, she had renters for our home! Praise God! In no time at all that prayer was answered!

 All the while my husband is not enjoying this new job like we all thought he would. I just assumed that he would really like it, seeing it was the same field of work and it was so close to his family. April 26th is a day I'll not soon forget. As my sister and I made plans to take all the kids to Chuck E Cheese, I got a text from my husband that said, "Don't leave the house yet." I asked him why...no response. Then my phone rang. He hesitantly told me to stay home, I again, asked why. He then said the words I am sure everyone has feared at some point. "I lost my job today." I asked if he was kidding, as he jokes about serious things with me sometimes. But I knew he wasn't joking this time. There wasn't much else to say. We hung up and I cried. Here we have uprooted our family of 5 two hours from a home that we own to living with family, a job that was secure, my family, and a church that we adored. What now?

As we prayed and talked through the events, we came to the conclusion that if we are doing our part in this, God is going to provide. He has never let us down before, why would He start now? We cannot have fear about this, fear is not of God, and when we are consumed with fear, God's peace has no place to land.

Today is June 19th. It has been close to 2 months with no luck so far. My wonderful husband has been on countless interviews with nothing offered. It didn't take me long to realize we had become a part of this staggering statistic, a large family with no income. Praise God that He has blessed us with such wonderful family. They are willing to house us and help us in anyway that they can during this time.

My husband is a veteran, bless his heart. He is registered for a vveterans only job fair coming up. They are hoping to fill 10,000 jobs at this fair. It is our prayer and hope that God has not offered up a job yet because there is something great waiting for him. What a time of trial. What a test of faith this whole move has been. Praise the Lord He has been the guide in all of this. And even though I don't understand it, He sees the big picture. I am glad He is in control, because if it were me behind the wheel, I would mess it all up for sure!

Let us simply wait on You Lord.