Good Morning! I am SO SORRY it has taken me so long to pay attention to my blog! We have one going off to college this year and I am learning the hard way how to meet all the deadlines. Our oldest is doing great keeping up, but the paperwork for the parents is overwhelming. However, I am learning, and I am sure the other three won't be this bad!haha

SO, here I am and happy to say, still chipping away at the credit card debt! Our taxes are done...we are getting a little back from the state, but owe a good chunk to the IRS. With my husband's bonuses this year, it pushed us into a higher tax bracket. Some of you are thinking, well then, pay off credit card debt too. Well, I won't have it. I know it sounds silly, but this is a habit I am trying to break by myself. My husband is being extremely supportive. I need to go through this journey and learn along the way, so that I not only learn self-control in spending, but can also teach others to bless others and truly appreciate the blessings the Lord has already bestowed upon us. It makes me sad to think how my previous behavior continues to affect my family in indiscreet ways that they are not fully aware of...but when I think how I could be using that money to save for my children's colleges, or any number of more productive ways, it makes me even madder and more determined to not look back..........and press on toward my goal! I can't change the past, but I can sure as heck change the way my future and the financial future of my family is going.

1 KINGS 10:21 "ALL KING SOLOMON'S DRINKING VESSELS WERE GOLD, AND ALL THE VESSELS OF THE HOUSE OF THE FOREST OF LEBANON WERE PURE GOLD. NOT ONE WAS SILVER, FOR THIS WAS ACCOUNTED AS NOTHING IN THE DAYS OF SOLOMON.
Footnote taken from the Family Life Marriage Bible:
"THE FOLLY OF ACQUIRING STUFF"

"Our culture applauds driven men and women who excel in their chosen career paths. We subconsciously regard these people as having arrived. We tend to view them as significant individuals, when, in reality, many have trashed their marriages, their children, and their friendships, merely to juggle the inhuman pressures necessary for their success."

"IT'S NOT WORTH IT!"

"The wealthiest man of his era, Solomon, he had it all. He accumulated unimaginable riches - servants, forests, vineyards, and much more. Our culture would insist that Solomon has arrived. Big Time! Yet at the end of his life, he characterized his own success as utterly meaningless." This is so sad!!

"Over the years," the author goes on to say, "one of the more stimulating conversations with our teenagers regarded what we did with our royalties. Early in our ministry, we decided that we would donate 100% of the royalties from books to FamilyLife. As our children got older, they began to see what this meant," states the author. "Stating it another way, they began to estimate the numbers and decided that with each book that was written, we were giving away the possibility of better cars for them!"

The author continues, "While I do not think there is anything wrong with authors taking their royalties, for us it became one of the statements of what's important to our children. There is no question those royalties could have taken some pressure off of us financially, but our prayer was that our children got the picture of what is truly important."

"Bill Bright, founder and President of Campus Crusade for Christ, once challenged me 'wear the cloak of materialism loosely.' As I have gotten older, I now understand his exhortation and how many of those who attempt to follow Christ in America are weighed down by things and material wealth," states the author.

"Jesus taught us TO GIVE TO THOSE IN NEED, BECAUSE, 'IT IS MORE BLESSED TO GIVE THAN TO RECEIVE (Acts 20:35).' If you put acquiring STUFF at the top of your agenda, you will end up a FOOL. Lasting significance comes WHEN YOU ALIGN YOURSELF WITH THE HEART OF GOD AND MAKE HIS AGENDA YOUR AGENDA!"



7 DAY MENU:

MONDAY: Beef coctail sausages; velveeta cheese shells; peach slices

TUESDAY: Baked chicken (Take a whole chicken and season with Season-All; Lemon Pepper and Garlic Salt. Then place in oven at 350 for about 1 1/2 hours or until chicken is done...YUM!); rice, corn

WEDNESDAY: English Muffin Pizzas; caesar salad; chocolate chip cookies

THURSDAY: Tacos (the kids love these)!; Spanish Rice

FRIDAY: BLT Sandwiches; fries, applie pie ala mode

SATURDAY: Steaks (on sale) on the grill; baked potatoe, corn on the cob

SUNDAY: Hotdogs on the grill (with chili or saurkraut); big pickles; baked beans


HOME BLESSING FOR TODAY: Dust all on main floor of home


LOVE DARE: Day 6 (Remember, don't rush to do all this in 40 straight days, although that is the ideal! But here, we are at least thinking about our spouses and letting them know how much we value the relationship the Lord has blessed and brought together).

Taken from The Love Dare by Kendrick

PROVERBS 16:32 "HE WHO IS SLOW TO ANGER IS BETTER THAN THE MIGHTY, AND HE WHO RULES HIS SPIRIT, THAN HE WHO CAPTURES A CITY."

"Choose today to react to tough circumstances in your marriage in loving ways instead of with irritation. Begin by making a list of areas where you need to add margin to your schedule. Then list any wrong motivations that you need to release from your life...."


God Bless! Have a wonderful DRY day!

DEBT FREE JOURNEY