To say that January has been an eventful month in the Nida house would be a gross understatement. This has probably been one of the most stressful months Jonathan and I have ever gone through together....
It all really started when we got home from our wonderful Christmas vacation to Louisiana. We pulled up in the driveway and noticed that the Caddy had a flat tire. Well, we didn't really feel like dealing with that after a two day road trip so we decided to wait a till the next day to fix it. We kept on putting off getting it fixed cause we didn't know how much it would cost us and we wanted to wait until I got my next paycheck no matter how much it was going to be. (We found that sticking to a Christmas budget is not to hard until you get ready to buy stuff for your KID... good grief!) We were not in need of two cars since Jonathan was still out of school. So a week went by and the car was still there in the driveway... with a flat.
Jonathan had signed up for a J-term class during the semester break, and we were so excited that my dad (paw paw) had volunteered to come for a whole week to keep Grace in the mornings while I went to work so Jonathan could go to school all day. Dad left Ft. Smith early on Saturday so he would make sure and get to Louisville at a decent hour. Well, we got a call from him that afternoon, and the news was not so good. His car had broken down in Nashville, and he was going to have to leave it there all week to be fixed. So Jonathan woke up early Sunday morning and went to go pick him up. When they got back to town Jonathan figured we had better go ahead and take the car in so that the tire could be fixed on Monday. So Grace and I played inside with PawPaw and Jonathan proceeded to put on the spare (in the sub freezing weather)... which was this close to being flat! By the time we got the repair shop the tire was FLAT! I am so glad we live at such a convenient location! The tire ended up not being a big deal to fix... No sweat... I just had to include the event in the story so you would know how things began. That was Monday...
Tuesday Jonathan was on his way home from school when the Caddy started beeping (yes beeping) at him and telling him to "stop the car" and "turn off the vehicle." So of course he obeyed. He then waited (in the sub freezing weather) for the tow truck to come and get him and take him back to the shop. I forget what was wrong (because honestly whatever it was called means absolutely nothing to me) but I do know that it cost $500 to repair. That was Tuesday...
Wednesday Jonathan and I went to get in the car (that had been warming up in the sub freezing weather) to carpool to school/work and we smell an awful smell. I simply can not describe it. It smelled like something was on fire. We started to back out of the driveway and realized that there was smoke in the car! I told him that there was absolutely NO WAY I was driving a stinking smoking car to work and we pulled back into the driveway. We got out and there was smoke pouring out from under the hood. So Grace and I stayed inside and I called to take off from work (since all 3 available cars were out of commission) while Jonathan and Dad got stinky outside looking at the Camry. Jonathan ended up catching a ride to school and Dad ended up riding to the shop with the tow truck man and then driving the Caddy home once it was done being worked on. Once again I don't really know what happened. All I know is that the bill this time was $700. Before I went to bed I made the statement that there was no way Thursday could be more expensive... don't ever make statements like that. That was Wednesday.
Thursday... ahh Thursday.... Every week/month/year has to have a low point... Thursday was definitely a low point in the Nida house. I went to work (in the sub freezing weather) with no problem. Mid morning we were all called into the conference room for a staff meeting. I was not totally shocked at the news of lay-offs and hourly cut-backs, but I don't think that anything really ever prepares you to get the news. Over the past couple of weeks every single project that we had been working on (except one that is currently under construction) was put on hold indefinitely. That means serious cash flow issues for a small firm like ours. So Thursday I became a part time employee. I am very very grateful that I am able to work that much and that we still have benefits, but man, it's still not the news you want to hear.
I will say that the good thing about Thursday being such a bad day was that things have been looking up since then. It is an awesome thing to know that we serve a sovereign Lord who is taking care of us and providing for us... even if it is ways that are different than we first expected. The past two weeks we have had to think about all kinds of different options for our family and pray that the Lord would show us where and what we are supposed to be doing. I wish we could live on a part time salary, but that is just not an option. We were barely making it on full time pay as it was.
So we prayed about...
1. Jonathan quitting school for a while and getting a full time job and me still working part time
2. Jonathan quitting school for a while and getting a full time job, selling the house and moving into a more affordable apartment and me quitting work to stay home.
3. Selling the house and moving somewhere so Jonathan could start an actual ministry position and I could stay home full time and Jonathan finishing school online (he is able to do that now)
4. Jonathan getting a part time job, me continuing to work part time, and Jonathan continuing to go to school full time.
I think this decision was hardest on my husband because all of the options seemed viable. My "job" was going to be about the same no matter what decision was made, but his could vary widely. I know that the Lord gives us hardship to bring us closer to him and to remind us of his grace and provision, and he has truly been doing that during this stressful time. I am constantly reminded of the countless ways that we are provided for and cared for in ways that totally surpass my expectations. This situation is testing our faith in a different way though because we don't really sense the Lord's calling to do one thing or another in particular. We knew that we were supposed to go to seminary. We just had to obey... and the Lord provided in ways that amazed us. We knew that we were supposed to start a family even though it did not make much sense. Once again, we obeyed, and once again, the Lord provided in ways that we could not have hoped for. This time is seems as though we are just trying to figure out what we are supposed to do. We want to obey whatever it is... we just need to know what it is first! But then perhaps times like this are meant to test our faith in times like this... when there is no clear correct action. I am now chasing rabbits so I will try to wrap things up here.
Like so many decisions in our marriage, Jonathan and I came to the same conclusion separately and then talked about our similar responses to what we felt the Lord urging us to do. The one thing that I knew for sure was that the Lord was asking us to do the hard thing. We have always been blessed with tons of family time. There are always several afternoons a week that we spend together as a family. Jonathan and I love playing with Grace up in her little room all afternoon and then taking a nap together and then cooking and eating dinner together all as a little family. We really did have a pretty cushy lifestyle... if you put a lot of value in quality family time... and we knew it... and we took advantage of it every singe day... cause we knew it had to come to an end someday. I think that day is tomorrow. Cause you see, Jonathan decided that we needed to do the hardest thing out of the options (in my opinion anyway). He is starting tomorrow as a part time (25 min. hour per week) manager at McDonald's, and he is starting a full time class load, and he is still going to keep the baby in the the mornings while I go to work, and he is getting his resume together to send out to anyone who will take it. I am going to get the house ready to sell and put it on the market so that when we do sell it we can either move into a cheaper place or move all together and "get started" in our ministry (whatever that means). This is going to be a pretty big change for me to. I am used to having a lot of help with the baby, and now I am going to be on my own most of the day. The thing that is most scary is how little Jonathan and I may see each other. Rarely do we go a day without having a great conversation or at least spending a good amount of time with each other. We are going to have to make a lot more of an effort to plan family activities and just spend time together. I know that this may seem a little wha wha on my part, and everybody has to do hard things like this at some point in their life... but hey! It's happening to me and my family now! ok, so that's all the complaining you will get from me... I hope.
But seriously though, I really don't know what tomorrow holds for us (the Lord has humbled me from ever thinking that I did) but I am truly thankful for every day I am blessed to be able to have and spend with my family... no matter where we are or what we are doing. And I am truly hopeful and trusting that the Lord is putting the pieces of his plan for my life and my families life together in a way that will be most pleasing and honoring to Him. I hope and pray that we will be willing and faithful servants.
Oh... we just got word that there will be no school tomorrow due to the snow/ ice/ snow storm that has been pounding us for the past 24 hours and plans to continue for another 24. I worked a ton over the weekend so I get to stay home too! Yippee!!! Another full day with my wonderful family. You had better believe I am going to enjoy it to the fullest!!!
