What a Difference a Year Makes

Wow, this year is so different from last year. I knew we were stressed, but I really had no idea how stressed we were! Last year, we were facing foreclosure. We had no Plan B for finding a place to live. We were seriously discussing the logistics of being homeless. We had little income, and no prospects for improvement. It sucked!

But, we had friends and family. Accepting help from others has got to be one of the hardest things in the world to do. It was humbling and humiliating and wonderful, all at the same time. While it was difficult to accept help from known donors, it was even more difficult to accept anonymous help... there was no one to thank!

Now here we are one year later. We lost our house, but thank God, due to an exceptional month for appraisals in January, we were able to find a rental. We have survived the humiliation of foreclosure, and have profited from the lessons learned. Dan was able to take extra classes this year to upgrade his license. We are eagerly anticipating an increase in appraisals for 2010.

The thing is, even when we were at our most desperate, we knew that there were many, many families in worse shape than us. We learned first-hand that every gift is important. Whether it was enough money to pay a bill, or a $25 gift card to Walmart, each gift was significant, and literally a life-saver. That lesson will stay with us.

We can't ever thank those that helped us enough. You were a gift from God to us. Knowing that people loved us, and were concerned about our situation made a huge difference in our struggle to make it through each day. If we could speak to each person, we would assure them that your gift to us will keep on giving. Our intention is to pay it forward whenever the opportunity arises. I kept a list of all the help we got, even the anonymous donations. Every once in a while, I pull it out and thank God for all those people who cared. I also pray that I will be sensitive to God as He shows us occasions when we can demonstrate that we care.

If you're facing tough times, hang in there. I'm here to testify that you will make it through. Things will be better, although better may look different than what you are imagining. And better does not mean back to whatever normal was before. Don't be afraid to reach out to others. You never know who's just waiting for the chance to bless you.