Independence Day (weekend)

a restful, relaxing weekend around the Walsh household (minus going to the church and working some more- unplanned as it was). But I wanted to share a little from my head this weekend. I've always been rather patriotic- comes from where I grew up, probably, as well as being a Boy Scout. And I don't see any conflict in my religion with patriotism- being thankful for the country I live in, thankful for my freedoms, proud of the good things (mixed with ashamed of some of our less than proud moments, too). Nationalism- feeling my country is better than others- I do see as a conflict, but not patriotism. With that in mind, I'd like to share a couple tidbits out of American ideologies these days:

"Celebrate the birth of your country by blowing up a small piece of it."

we went to see fireworks with some of Rachel's family.

and they were quite nice.

Fireworks are generally one of the most patriotic symbols of our country, especially around the 4th of July.


And just like most of the other stuff we buy these days in America, about 95% of all fireworks purchased in America- are made in China (along with 92% of the American flags that are purchased by consumers).

Must be what makes us so great as a country. Happy birthday, America.

Reading the news early in the AM

THIS article made me laugh a bit and nod in agreement. wanted to share it. enjoy.

The specs on the car

The specs & stats:

Vehicle: 2002 Honda CRV
Mileage: 82,000
Color: Navy Blue
Engine- 4 cylinder
Important specs:
-6 disc changer
- power windows/mirrors
- Moon-roof
- folding picnic table doubles as cover for storage/2nd tire area
- folding tray between driver and passenger seat

Other info:
- Automatic transmission
- AWD

Never a dull moment

Last Wednesday, I had my friend Sonny (our mechanic) have a look at our car. The Nissan- see pictures from THIS post. The background is this- we had originally agreed to purchase that car as a 2nd car- the primary was supposed to be our Camry. It was not intended to be the primary car and there were things that, had we known it would be the 2nd car, we would have passed on the car because of.

On top of that, we also had a problem with the car a couple months ago. Back in Feb, we were told by a (most likely) biased mechanic of a dozen things wrong with our car. Having had the car for less than 5 months, we didn’t think that sounded right and took it to the dealership. They basically denied having the ability to foresee any of it, despite the fact that they claimed to have done all the work on it when we bought the car and they would have known what kinds of things would be getting ready to go. They agreed to cover half the work for us because of their reputation, but unfortunately, their reputation was soiled in our minds. Because they knew we were financing the car, they told us that it was only owned by one person (which we found was false), and the car was obviously not in the “great” shape they described- we couldn’t help but feel taken.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago- Rachel and I have been frustrated with the car and cannot believe how much could be going wrong. It sounded like the exhaust was rattling around. So, I agreed with Rachel we could look into the trade-in value of our car and figure out if we could potentially do something else for our vehicle. The trade-in value was much less than we thought it would be, but we were still willing to explore our options- even if we had to eat some of the loan for the car, perhaps we could minimize that. Fast forward to last Wednesday now when Sonny looked at my car. He said he thought he got it, but also told me that it would need to pretty good exhaust work in about a year or so. Add that to the exhaust still rattling. And I’m thinking, “this car is a money pit! If we keep this, we’re going to sink more money into it than the car is worth because it seems like every few months something else is coming up!!” and so with that, we made a decision based on conversations, some prayer and a little research- and when Rachel went to the bank on Friday to ask about what kinds of options they’d have available for us to wrap the old loan from another bank into an auto loan for this one- they actually pre-approved us for the car and can help us with the other loan.

So, I make a call about the car we’d seen a few weeks ago- which I neglected to mention up until now- and they, surprisingly, still had it because they’d been too busy to clean it up. So, on Saturday, we went down, test drove it, looked it over, went to the bank, signed the paperwork and then went back to pick up our “new to us” 2002 Honda CRV. Rachel has been wanting a CRV for 8 years. being a small SUV actually helps our gas mileage because it’s a smaller engine than our car had. And has better emissions than the car because it’s newer and because it’s not as far traveled.

Never again to buy a Nissan. And NEVER again to buy a car from Lancaster Toyota Mazda. Stay tuned for pictures of the beautiful new vehicle, which really IS in great condition- which I know thanks to my carfax report. And which is told to me not by a car salesman, but by someone who has earned our trust. As I say- stay tuned for pictures. And this is really long- so stay tuned as I may have more to say about this later…

sadness

we just got home from the hospital tonight- rachel went to the doctor having pain in her stomach and we found out that we lost the baby. we're quite sad and upset because we were very excited. We appreciate any prayers and thoughts at this time.

the never ending question

For all the times people asked us, I think they finally gave up. The one time our friend Tina at church didn’t ask was the Sunday after we found out. The one time Lisa Dorr, a sort of adopted mother for me, didn’t ask, it was the time we’d planned to visit with the intention of telling. And I think just about everyone who asked us within the first two years of our marriage “when?”- they must have given up around our third anniversary. And it’s just the time that we weren’t asked that we were ready to tell- and now to announce- we are expecting our first child. That’s right, folks, Rachel is pregnant!!

Due date- November 9. It was originally set for Oct 31 when she went to confirm the pregnancy test- but after our visit to the doctor on Wednesday (April 16), that was changed. We thought she was 11 ½ weeks along and that we should hear the heartbeat of the baby, but the midwife was unable to find it for us to hear. She said that she could tell where it was cuz she does that all the time, but she couldn’t tell us what to be listening for. That and a couple other concerns had her sending us for an ultrasound- just to make sure everything was ok. So, we got to SEE the baby instead. Which was much better! And with that, they said that based on what they saw, Rachel was more like 10 weeks than 11 ½, so that accounted for the concerns- because the difference of a week and a half at this stage is a big difference.

I’ll (we’ll) try and keep all our family and friends up to date on all the proceedings and such- everything’s still relatively early. I blog on blogger, facebook and myspace, so you can always check any of the three. That’s all for now- just the big announcement! And the visit to the doctor’s office this week.

I've been moved

This morning started like many others. But as I turned on the news, I was reminded that today marks the 40th anniversary of the Death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Normally, celebrations of death are quite somber and not something we remember or celebrate as a society. This death in particular is not one to celebrate, but rather, the life and death of this man has led us to think.

One quick thought i had this morning was how much his death woke up many people who would have otherwise not cared about the Civil Rights movement. Often times, we can see that someone's death has done as much as the purpose of his life- see Jesus Christ.

But what got me thinking is that this morning, as I was driving to work, reflecting on the work of this man's life, I turned my ipod to U2's "Pride (In the Name of Love)". and I was moved. extremely moved. I ran across this thought- of all the Christians who have served in such a popular role in society, Martin Luther King Jr. may have embodied the Gospel most- at least, in our time. This is not to discount the many men and women who have made significant contributions to the Christian faith, but something about his focus on not only equality in races, but also to social justice proves that he was not only focussed with spiritual, but also with some often missed, but extremely important parts of the gospel.

I want to encourage others to think about our calling to be reconcilers, advocates for the poor and marginalized, and ultimately, the first to call for justice. Martin Luther King Jr. saw something in society that did not line up with common decency, let alone the Gospel calling- and he chose to do something about it. Can we possibly be moved by someone who's purpose was not overtly 'spiritual', but was nonetheless one of the calling of believers in Christ.

hands and feet

i am in this weird place... I went with about 20 or so from my church today to Philadelphia to do a work project for a church that we have connected with there. To be honest, it felt REALLY good. I'm not the kind of person who does things like this for my feeling. and i'm not talking about feeling good about myself, anyway. i'm talking about how for the first time in a few weeks, i feel like i belong in this church again. and i've hit a realization.

i feel most a part of this church (and any church, i believe) when i'm doing stuff. In other words, when i'm serving. This has become more poignant recently because i feel like i belong when i'm serving, but not especially in our "sunday morning service". I think it's because of this- i've been coming to grips with the gospel more recently in terms of being the hands and feet of Jesus on earth. being HIS vehicle- His method for saving the world. and too often, in poiusness, the church has turned off the world. by doing horrific things, by commiting acts of evil in the name of Christ- by acting exactly the opposite of how Christ taught us to act. One of the primary ways that people will see the Church is really Christ's is by loving others. And honestly, love is not an emotion- it is, as the old song goes, something you do. my feelings of love for my wife mean jack crap if I don't express them some way. and our love for others means just the same without some way of expressing.

So, for whatever reason, i feel more like i belong in my church now when i'm serving and i don't feel very much like i belong on sunday mornings... this is very strange...

mistaken?

in the groggy place between sleep and awake when i'm usually making absolutely no sense and am completely incoherent, I thought of this today... it comes from the small snippet of interview that spawned my previous writing, but is a larger problem than an individual. Osteen was asked about how his points of his last book don't include God or Jesus Christ and he responded that there are biblical references to back all of them.

It made me think, this morning, about how we take our scriptures. Do we find our enlightenment in them, discovering rays of truth straight from them and then finding that to be proven true in other places in the Scriptures? or do we make our points and then go out to hunt down passages that support our point of view (which leads to using passages out of context)?

It is the equivalent of asking a scientist in her experimentations if her results are independently of her hypothesis with the intention of discerning the truth or if her results are used solely to prove her hypothesis- a study unwilling to accept that its original premise may have been wrong.

It is important for we Christians (and not just pastors) to think about these things because it is important for us to study the Scriptures with an open heart and not come to them to prove our pre-conceived notions. Or our self-thought self-help suggestions.

defining the role of the pastor

"There are lots of people qualified to explain the scriptures to you. That's not my gifting."- Joel Osteen

I just watched a clip with this quote. I cannot believe the audacity of this statement. if you are a pastor, according to the scriptural definition of the pastor, your job is to teach/explain the scriptures!! I've blogged in the past about cotton candy preachers, fluffy ministry and Christian Crack. So i'm not doing that here- but i'm saying this. I'm frightened- literally frightened- for the people who depend on Osteen's ministry. I'm afraid for those people in their spiritual life- because they depend on a person to teach them the scriptures who says he's not gifted in explaining and teaching the scriptures.

not to be overly political, but...

this is not about super tuesday. this is a personal rant/vent based on some stuff i've read recently that has confirmed my feelings for some time. it sparks from the budget that President Bush introduced yesterday. it is a $3.1 trillion budget. it is the largest budget ever and it calls for a number of things- the most noticeable of which are increases- in military spending and tax rebates. i like tax rebates because i like money in my pocket. but beyond those increases, it calls for tightening everything else- especially reductions in medicare and medicaid- medical plans for elderly and poor people. how much do we have to spend on those increases if we have the biggest budget ever and it still tightens up just about every other kind of spending?

our country- forget the war on terrorism, forget normal military spending without wars. just on Iraq, our country spends more money than the entire education budget. And he wants to approve yet more money for that while scrimping even more for education. and it's not just education, but education is one of the most important things we can focus money toward- as it becomes more and more obvious that America's students are not keeping up with the world and that more and more are not getting high school educations by dropping out, failing out or otherwise.

all this has led me to these personal questions that i vent here- not believing that i am very highly read anyway. "How can we as Christians still support this man as president?" Just because he is a Christian (whether it's true or not) does not mean he is doing the right thing. How can we overlook his poor record on the home-front- education, environment, helping the poor and needy. his sole focus now seems almost to be overseas on this war we were supposed to have won years ago.

and just this morning i read an article that adds to this- our president signed an exemption for the Navy from an environmental bill that bans sonar usage in a particular area due to its ill effects on whales. he claims to be environmentally concerned, but when push comes to shove, it appears he is not really. a judge said it was not legal for him to sign the exemption and that the Navy must abide by the guidelines set out. do we honestly want to support a president who feels that because he is president, he can, by virtue of his position, overstep laws and circumvent the rules? that sounds more like the tyrants and kings of the middle ages than the President of the United States in the modern age.

please don't take me wrong- i still support the office of the president, and on a personal level, i do not believe President Bush is evil. But to support a man for president based solely on his religious leanings is, as I've said so many times in the past, a ridiculous notion. there are too many things associated with the office of president that would compromise the true faith of most Christians that would need to be decided as president, and while a man can do it well, we cannot vote for him because of that. we must support his politics- and in this case, i do not.

Create Your Own Caption

Create your own caption for this image:



the favorite i've thought of so far- "Warning: all snowmen caught trespassing will be decapitated"

been thinking about- non-profits

Recently, I tivo'd an occurrence of "Good Morning America." I usually do not watch this show, especially on a Sunday morning as it was. However, I had turned the television on while eating breakfast and saw that one of the stories they were going to cover that morning was regarding televangelists, non-profit organizations and the way they spend their money.

In short, this segment explained that apparently the government and governmental officials have been concerned about the way that non-profit organizations- particularly the multi-million dollar ones- many wrapped around televangelists- are spending the tax-free dollars they rake in. They showed, to hit one particular, a televangelist who petitioned the watchers of his program to donate 20 million dollars to buy a private jet for (essentially) him to use. He pledged that it was only going to be used for the glory of Jesus Christ. Shortly after buying the jet, it was used to fly him to a conference he was speaking at in Australia. On the way there- multi-day layover in Maui.

Boy, it sure stinks to suffer for Jesus.

They all claim, however, that they operate within the legal tax limits and laws.

So, as I watched this, I thought- shame on them. I'd welcome any comments on this, please- but I can't help but think how the Bible calls us as Christians to live lives that are above reproach. How much more so for leaders of such large ministries should they be above that. If the government is going to be launching inquiries or auditing these companies because of supposed illegalities, it does not matter any more if what they have done is legal! The standard set by the government of legal or not is considerably less than what most Christians would consider to be right or moral. So, if the government is concerned that their rules are not being met, how much more should heads be hung, apologies be offered and confession and repentance be made.

a question for those who look for something specific to which to respond- Just because the law allows it, does that mean that the non-profit money these organizations take in is being spent in beneficial ways for the Kingdom?

Bumper Stickers- the good ones

Usually, I am not a fan of bumper stickers. My religious, political and moral beliefs do not fit easily into the small statement that usually are found on bumper stickers.

I ran into this, today, however- and it made me laugh, and, despite not wanting an non-removable sticker on my car- almost want one.

"When Jesus said, 'love your enemies,' I think he probably meant, 'don't kill them.'"

Defining "Teen"

While watching television this evening, I watched an odd commercial.

It begins by saying "this game is rated 'T' for 'Teen.'" The advert then goes on to show two obviously pre-teen boys (as in like, 10 years old) playing the game on their Wii.

What message does this send about the video game rating system?

Serving God

This thought has been swirling around my head for a few days as I ponder things that I hear in Christian circles. Often, we sing songs and pray prayers and talk about how we want to serve God. I wonder, in light of passages like Matthew 25:31-46, do we realize this plain and simple fact: Serving God means serving others.

and not just Christian others. serving other people. Often times, we spiritualize passages like Matthew 25, or Isaiah 61. but, as much as we can find spiritual comparisons to the types of people listed, but they are quite possibly talking more about the literally poor, oppressed, needy, sick, imprisoned. after all, Jesus himself served people with literal physical afflictions as well as spiritual.

i would welcome any thoughts on this subject- should any of my readers feel the desire to, or should you desire to direct others here, as well.

terrorists- of the ultimate kind

"Satan is {like} a terrorist." and later "...he is a terrorist"

Douglas Kelchner- in his sermon 10/14/07

Our 'New' Cars

Since the untimely death of our Camry (still one of the saddest days in history, which began one of the strangest weeks ever- see “God Has a Sense of Humor”), I have waited until the car situation was totally settled before adding the update here. So here’s the quick story and specs on each of our ‘new’ cars.

Car #1

1995 Nissan Maxima
• Color: white
• Miles: 112,000 (when we bought it- a month ago)
• Automatic transmission
• Power windows, power seat (driver)
• General feelings: it’s not quite as gas efficient as the Camry was, but it’s also a larger car with a larger engine. I’ve been driving it to and from Lancaster for 2 weeks for work- it’s got a lot of good qualities, but our Camry was simply a sweet car and we miss it. It’s ok, though- no complaints, no worries.

Story: We had picked out this car on the Friday following Labor Day weekend. We had been to a few guys we know in the auto business to see if they could keep their eyes and ears open for us for something specific. We knew we were going to refinance the Camry to include a second car and we wanted to feel as though we were getting something we’d be able to keep for a while. We found this as we just decided to take a quick look on a used car lot with a good rep.

Funny thing is: we had taken care of all the financing options at the bank that Friday night, but it needed a manager’s approval to cut us a check- and there wasn’t going to be one till Monday morning. Through the rest of the weekend, Rachel and I figured out what was going to work best for us to get the car sometime before Tuesday night (when the dealership insisted we pick it up by) and decided that coming to Lancaster after work on Monday and doing the paperwork Tuesday morning would be ok- Rachel would be late for work Tuesday, but better Tuesday than Monday she decided. Then the Camry caught fire on Monday AM on the way to work, and despite this- the bank still let us refinance- so we got the Maxima (and it went along with our rental car on the insurance company’s dime). Story finished with car #2…

Car #2

1998 Mitsubishi Mirage
• Color: Grey
• Miles: 100,700
• 5-speed (standard transmission)
• Manual everything- windows, door locks, seats, side mirrors- everything. No frills.
• Cassette player
• 2-door DE Coupe
• General feelings- I’ve really missed driving a standard!! When we had gone looking for a #2 car and decided on the Maxima, I was sad because I had really been hoping for a standard! It’s a small car, however. A bit smaller than my first car- a ’93 Subaru Impreza Sedan. But it reminds me of that, too. And as long as I can fit (which I do), i can live with it.

Story: We heard from the insurance company on Friday- actually, from the adjustor who had looked at the car (as opposed to the claims adjustor who was the overseer handling our claim) and he told us what he valued the car at. MUCH more than we had anticipated. With this in mind, we sometime talked to the guy at the bank who had approved the refinance of the Camry and he told Rachel that the bank would release the title for less than the insurance company would pay, so we would get the difference. Slight misunderstanding there, however- as what he really meant was that the insurance company would have to send the bank the whole check, which would be applied wholly to the newly refinanced loan, and we would get a loan giving us the certain amount, and the rest of it paying off what was due on the other loan- basically, refinancing that loan to give us some to buy a 2nd car, but still pay off a good chunk… much more complicated- added a middle man, but whatever…

The REAL problem came in the insurance company taking forever to do stuff. We even told our claims adjustor that we would overnight the paperwork from us to her to speed up the process. That didn’t stop her from taking a week to do anything with that paperwork, then lying to Rachel about sending paperwork to the bank- she said she’d sent it a week earlier, then her assistant told Rachel that it had been faxed to the bank that day.

All that’s the side story. This car came across our plate from someone at church- she worked with a girl who was having her 2nd child and she and her husband needed a larger vehicle then as the Mirage would not take 2 car seats. We kinda dismissed it- not because we weren’t interested, but because at first, we thought we were going to have to finance something again and even though the price was good for this car, we really wanted to get something a bit more if we were going to be paying for it over the next 5 years.

Then we found out we were going to actually have money in our pocket to put a sizeable downpayment (or simply buy outright if it was less- which this was), we revisited the information that had been passed along to us. So, we set up a test drive of the car, which went very smoothly. We had a small side conference, and that evening we told them we’d take it- as soon as the insurance company cut a check and we had the money to pay for it. And this weekend (the first weekend of October, 2007), we transferred the title and picked up the car.

Not Against Flesh and Blood

Ephesians 6:12
"For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places."

I’ve been thinking about the topics of politics and religion recently. These are, as any sane person will tell you, the two topics to stay away from discussion regarding. Everyone’s opinion is usually very strong, and people are so charged- yes, driven- by these two topics, it is hard to hold a calm discussion about them without having it quickly escalated. A problem arises when discussing either topic of the two of them. Imagine trying to discuss both!

I’ve been thinking about these topics recently as I’ve done some reading. It has been a struggle for me to see what I have seen so commonly among, particularly, God’s people regarding these two subjects. The struggle has been so intense in me- seeing things that I know that God’s Word would not promote being taught and perpetuated so much. Jesus Himself would very strictly reprimand this behavior, I believe- based on his own reaction to a similar dilemma.

First, I want to take a look at Jesus response when asked to get into a discussion on politics. He was asked about paying taxes. A dilemma of the day among the Jews was whether or not they should pay taxes. They did not want to recognize Caesar as their ruler, but to stay out of trouble, they had to pay. Jesus was asked whether they should pay taxes.

Of course, they were trying to trap Him- if the answer was yes, then they would say he was supporting the Romans, something most Jews strayed away from- and certainly those who rallied around Jesus would. If the answer was no, then he was supporting anarchy and they could have had Him arrested by the Romans. The answer, however, was more complex and said so much more;

“Who’s face is on the coins?”
“Caesar’s”
“then give to Caesar what is His, and give to God what is God’s!”

In essence, that what he was here about was more important than the questions they were asking. His mission, which was clearly defined as bringing about the Kingdom of God, was more important than politics, not “wrapped up in” politics.

Ephesians 6 tells us that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers and principalities of darkness in the spiritual realm. I like the way the New Living Translation puts it: “we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies”

To the Christians out there who feel that God’s Kingdom will be brought about on earth through a particular nation, people group or political party, note this- those are flesh and blood “enemies” that we have focused on.

Our struggle to bring about the Kingdom of God is not against any of the following:
- Islamic people/nations (very cafeul- I specifically am noting the people!)
- Terrorists
- Communists
- Liberals
- Conservatives
- Homosexuals
- Abortionists
- Tree-huggers
- Harry Potter books
- “Family Guy”
- any other people on the face of the earth.

While we may wrestle with other religious worldviews (and perhaps the evil powers behind them), we are not to be wrestling with one another. Our enemy is not flesh and blood. Allying ourselves with any particular political view too closely will inevitably wear off on us saying that these ARE our enemies. We must resist that temptation!

These thoughts have been brewing in me for a while, and articulated as I began to read a book by Gregory Boyd. Stay tuned for my reaction to and summary of the first few chapters, as I’ve been reading them on lunch break at work.

God Has a Sense of Humor

As of Wednesday, this week was shaping up to be one of the worst that either Rachel or myself have experienced. On Monday, something happened with our car and we ended up with a hole the size of a baseball in the engine of our 2001 Toyota Camry with 72,000 miles on it. See my previous writing for some more info on that.

On top of that, the rental car company (which is covered by our insurance- as I had the foresight to realize that if our only car dies, we'd need another one) had no cars. It was 11 am (after the 7:20 fire under the hood) before they were able to pick us up and get Rachel off to work. Long story there, as well.

As if that was not enough with the rental car company, when we wanted to trade in the truck they gave us for something more economical, and within the budget assigned by the insurance company, the guy treated Rachel like a child and kept trying to make a little extra money on our misfortune. Of all the potential positive points, I would not rent from Enterprise again- and would advise anyone else to consider how much treating customers right matters, because they have not treated us well at all.

Rachel had been scheduled for surgery on her wrist on Thursday. A ganglion cyst that she had previously had removed with a 10% chance of return had, in fact, returned. So, on Wednesday, she called our insurance company to make sure that pre-authorization had taken place for her surgery. They hadn't gotten it or any of the referrals except for the MRI, so they were requiring her to get all that from our "family" doctor, who is only listed on our policy and not actually our family doctor, in order to ok her surgery. So Rachel called them, and they would not simply call the doctors who had done the work- they required her to leave work and go see them so they could look at her wrist and say, "ok, we can give the ok to the insurance company."

All frustrating things.

On the other side of things… After much searching, the prior Friday, Rachel and I had found and decided on what we were going to do for a 2nd car- a 1995 Nissan Maxima. We had gone to the bank for our financing- to refinance the Camry loan and roll the Maxima into it. They had pretty much ok'd, but required approval of a manager. With the Camry engine blowing up/catching fire on Monday morning, and us not having signed the papers, we were VERY concerned that this may not go through.

Talked to the guy at the bank- wasn't going to say anything, but felt that I should out of honesty. He told me that he could either forget I told him what happened, or they could deny us financing for the Maxima alone because it is too old to hold the title as collateral. We decided to go with the first option, as the Camry is still ours until the insurance company buys it.

We had planned to sign that paperwork on the loan and the car on Tuesday morning, so we made plans to visit a couple apartments on Monday night. One of them, we really liked- a lot. But with this week's luck, what's going to happen, right?

Rachel's surgery on Thursday went well- as well as could be expected. We spent the day uneventfully resting after that- having had to get up early, and Rachel being tired from the anesthesia.

Friday, we got a call from the auto insurance company- they'd sent an adjustor and finally got back to us. They valued our car at almost DOUBLE what we had expected based on the Kelly Blue Book value. WOW!!! Then, as we were at Borders waiting for our table at Olive Garden (meeting with some of rachel's friends from YWAM), I got a call from the apartment. They wanted to rent to us, but wanted to ask a few more questions to be sure first. ???

So, the beginning of this week was abysmal. Had to look at the positive, but overwhelmed by just about everything going wrong that could go wrong! The middle of the week, things started to look up and the worst case scenario that looked like it might be happening was not actually happening. And as the week ended- even with Rachel having her wrist immobilized, things started to look up!

So here we are- going to be moving- a little later than we'd hoped, but still this fall. we have a car- we were hoping for a second, but the insurance money will almost completely pay off our loan for the 2 cars. Rachel's still got a job- i'm still looking. and we've got our church- the reason for moving and most important of all.