"You Changed My Life"

Book Review: “You Changed My Life” by Max Lucado. This is a wonderful Christian book to give to someone who has truly made a difference in your life. It is filled with inspirational stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. God uses common people to show his love and compassion in all circumstances and situations. I especially enjoy Chapter 5, stories of “Hope”. The book is small and broken up in sections so you can take it with you anywhere and quickly read a short inspirational story. I highly recommend this book to both share with someone special or as an inspiration read to have at hand when life throws a curve ball. Love, Kindness, Commitment, Compassion, Hope, Courage, Wisdom and Friendship. It covers all the bases for a well rounded spiritual uplifting. Truly, any book that Max Lucado writes is a must read for anyone who is seeking spiritual support and guidance.

Book Review!

The Portable Patriot. Documents, Speeches, and Sermons That Compose the American Soul edited by Joel J. Miller and Kristen Parrish will get you hooked on the second story, “Mary Rowlandson Recounts Her Captivity”. This young woman, the wife a pastor, was unfortunate to witness first hand the brutality of war. I will never understand her strength as she held one of her children and tried to protect them only to be shot with a bullet and die in her arms. Over the course of several weeks, Mary was held captive and relied on her strong faith to sustain her. Reading her story made me feel like I was right there with her. The other stories in the book are a great collection of American History wrapped up in the strong Christian faith that this wonderful country was built on. A good read.

Mind Your Own Mortgage

This book is a must read for anyone interested in learning how to buy a house intelligently and pay it off early. There is detailed information on how to shop for a mortgage, how much money to put down and what the monthly mortgage payment should be in relation to household income. Even for those who already have a mortgage, the author explains how to manage any mortgage either by refinancing or paying it off early. Staying away from gimmicks is the key as well as reading the fine print and negotiating a better deal.

As an added bonus, the author explains why being debt free is the key to being wealthy. Much like Dave Ramsey in his Total Money Makeover book, Mr. Bernabé is also a believer of debt freedom. The author states, "Consumer debt has nothing to do with what you've purchased; it represents a current and future claim on your money." This is a foreign concept in our credit card using society but it is incredibly true. Financial freedom is powerful and attainable.

I will certainly be passing this book on to friends who are newly married and looking down the road to purchasing their own home. I only wish I had read this book 20 years ago.

Walk Like You Have Somewhere to Go - Book Review

This book is written by Lucille O'Neal who is the mother of the basketball star Shaquille O'Neal. Lucille tells the story of how she went from being a teenage unwed mother to a successful adult earning her master's degree in her fifties.

I enjoyed seeing the family pictures which made a nice touch. Overall, it was an easy book to read and made for a very interesting story as Lucille recalled her life journey.

I especially liked the bible verses as they pertained to each chapter of her life. However, I found a typo on chapter 32. Psalm 56:4. In the book it reads: "In God, whose word I praise in God I trust; I will not be not afraid." Too many "nots" in the quote...

Overall, I really admire Lucille and her courage to come out and tell her story. Although I can appreciate her dedication to her family and loved ones I was very disappointed that her marriage ended in divorce. Yes, life is hard and relationships go through trials and tribulations, but in the end it is harder to be alone than with someone you shared the majority of your life with. God is good and with his help anything is possible, including a renewed relationship with the one you committed yourself to.

Busy Busy Busy

Wow, I can't believe I haven't blogged since April 9th. I have been so busy lately with traveling and working that I haven't stopped to record it.

Here is what I've done over the past two weeks:

• Traveled to Charleston, SC to volunteer for Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover Live show and attend the full day EntreLeadership workshop. Both were fabulous!
• Attended my father in law's funeral at Arlington. It was over the top and a great tribute to his service.
• Worked, worked, worked
  

It's going down

It's time for the tree to come down. It is now a hazard to our house.

The tree cutters are coming at noon today and it will probably take them a few hours to cut and then the boys will be stacking it in the garden away from the house.

Sad day, it was a great tree.

It's here!!!

I just got my book in the mail and will be reading it today!

Stay tuned for my review!

Waiting

I am trying not to be impatient, but this week has been incredibly slow. I could be working on a project, but the client is not ready yet. My fear is that all my work will start coming in at the same time and it will be overwhelming.

Seems like all I do anymore is pray.

In Mourning

John's exit interview today.

Looking for Serenity and Peace

The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Amen.

--Reinhold Niebuhr

I'm weighing in on things I can change and things I cannot change.

What I can control:
My weight.
My outlook on life and family.
My anger at what I cannot control.

What I cannot control:
Whether or not John gets a job this week. Or next. Or next.
My son's lack of focus on his school studies.
The weather.
The agenda of the relatives.
Jacked up prices at Harris Teeter when they have triple coupon specials.
Customers who don't follow deadlines and become unresponsive.
Checks in the mail.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will direct your paths.

Proverbs 3, 5-6

Not sure how to take this...

For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him.

— Philippians 1:29 (NIV)

This is today's verse and I'm not sure how to take it. We have been struggling through the month with uncertainty and doubt. I've been fighting it and it's been a battle. I've had some good days, but mostly bad. Does this mean I'm supposed to be this way? Is this the way God intended me to be? Why would he want our family to suffer? What is his plan?

I am completely helpless in this position. I am working hard and getting more contracts to keep our bank account afloat but it still hurts to put our snowball on hold. I keep seeing the bank balances and wishing I could take a portion of it and completely pay off our last credit card. But, I am worried if I do that, we will regret it and wish we had the money to pay the mortgage sometime down the road if things don't turn around quickly.

Everything was going so great. We were well on the road to debt freedom and building a comfortable emergency fund. It was fun, it was exciting and it made me feel smart with our money. I've never felt that way before.

I pray hard that this detour is short and we can get back on our debt free journey again.

Walk Like You Have Somewhere to Go

I have been accepted by BookSneeze.com to read and review books on my blog! Here is the book I will be anxiously anticipating and will post my review as soon as I am done reading the book. It looks like a very inspiring read and I am looking forward to it!

Lucille O’Neal shares her public battles and personal struggles as a young, single mother of NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal.

Lucille O’Neal would one day have it all, but not before fighting the public battles and personal demons that would threaten to shatter the very foundation of her life while taking their devastating toll along the way.

Over the past 16 years, Lucille O’Neal has become one of the best-known mothers of a celebrity athlete. But behind the scenes, the mother of four has her own story, at once heartbreakingly familiar in its pain and yet wonderfully inspirational in its outcome.

In this memoir, O’Neal candidly describes the pain of being an outcast and the stigma of becoming an unwed, teenage mother. Most interestingly, she candidly shares another side of fame and fortune—a side rarely revealed or admitted in public: her unexpected feelings of anger and resentment towards her son’s blinding success.

Book Reviews

Do you read what the reviews are before you read a book? I know I do! I hope to offer my insight on new books coming out with the help of BookSneeze!

Check back soon!

Keeping the faith

Faith without doubt is powerful. Mark 11:23

There is no doubt that we will get through this blip in the road and continue toward our debt free plan. Lord, please make this part of our journey short. Amen.

Hope

"Have not I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

— Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

What happened?

We were doing so well.

Our last credit card was going to paid off March 15th. Our very last debt was scheduled to be paid off the day before our 19th wedding anniversary. We have been living on a budget, throwing everything we had into our debts. Beans and rice, rice and beans all the way.

We are teaching our second Financial Peace class and feel like we've made a positive impact on the folks who attended. I was going to see Dave live in April for his Entreleadership class where my only expense was going to be the hotel and gas. And, I have been diligently checking Dave's website on when the volunteer applications would be accepted to work the program the day before I took my Entreleadership class.

I was looking into what it would take to home school the kids because I am unhappy with their school system. After researching it, I found that it would take anywhere from $150-$300 a month to fund their books and materials as well as tutors. Piece of cake..

Well "it" just hit the fan.

John has until the end of March to find another position in his company. If he doesn't get hired, he only has a few weeks of severance before we are on our "own".

The cat is at the vet after getting attacked by the dog. $426.15 is going out of our checking account for that. And, the dog bit my hand in the process. It hurts horribly and is still swollen. Thank goodness the rabies shots were up to date.

The other cat is puking in the hall. Sympathy pains?

I guess the upsides are:
We have $47,000 less debt than we had before plus we can start stockpiling our money now.
I received a free bible in the mail today. It's beautiful.
I have lots of work, new clients to tend to.

Trust in the Lord. Pray. Pray. Pray.

Teaching my first coupon class!

We'll see how it goes. It's only for a half an hour and I doubt if I'll be able to cover everything, but I'd like to stress a few things....

The idea behind using coupons is to purchase items YOU USE at drastically lower prices than you would normally buy them at.

You cannot be brand loyal.

Shop early when there's a sale. Stores don't always stock up enough of the best sale items. Don't take it all. If the item is gone, ask for a raincheck for as many as you think you might purchase. Rainchecks normally never expire.

Be kind to the cashier. Tell them up front if you are going to make more than one transaction. If there is a line of shoppers be patient and wait for them to pay for their items before you check out.

The Sunday newspaper inserts are the best place to get your coupons.

Ask neighbors and friends if you can have their coupons. Stock pile as many as you can. If you know that the Sunday paper will have 5 or more inserts and they are usable, think about purchasing an extra paper at the drug store.

Only print out coupons if you know you are going to use that one in particular. Toner and paper are expensive and coupons, unfortunately, expire.

Shop the grocery sales, buy what's on sale and make your menu for the week with what you purchased. Keep an inventory on your fridge so you know what you have to work with.

Follow blogs like www.mycouponteacher.com. She will let you know the sales and coupons before they come out. She also matches the coupons to the stores with prices. It is unnecessary to pay for a coupon service. You can do this on your own.

Day Two of Lent

It's day two already! I am trying so hard to be motivated and was able to finish one of my ads that I've been putting off for two days now. I'm on a roll!

I love lent and changing perspective. I am disappointed that I was unable to go to Ash Wednesday services but am happy that we were able to go mentor one of our FPU students. This really seemed more important, anyway.

Today is a day of short prayers, reflection and motivation.