And the thunder rolls...
And so it seems that everything comes crashing down at the same time. Like a row of dominoes, one little flick and the whole chain collapses.
We have to get a new AC unit for one of the duplexes - the one we were supposed to rent out tomorrow.
*great*
$900, minimum.
Now, remember, this is in addition to the $1200 we shelled out for the new floors (which were more for medical reasons than asthetic - you should have SEEN what was under that carpet!) It is also in addition to the $1000 we will have to pay to get my car repaired.
Yes, dear readers, that comes to a grand total of $3200. And we have an empty unit now, and another one on the way.
*sigh*
BUT
The Lord has provided so far.
I looked at our bills last night. We should be able to pay for my car after the first of the month. Then the floor money should be in around the middle of July.
As for the AC unit (which, by the way, MUST be repaired by TOMORROW), we were just plain out of luck.
UNTIL... my mom called.
"What did Uncle C say?"
Uncle C is her brother who works on AC's and who also came out to look at ours.
"$900 - the whole unit has to be replaced."
"Wow. Well, maybe M (stepdad) can help you."
"We'll see. You know B won't want to take any money from you guys. Or if he does, he'll want to pay it all back asap."
"Okay. Well, call me after you talk with him."
A few minutes later, M called.
"I heard what Uncle C said. We're gonna pay for it."
"Let me talk to B to make sure that's okay. We may let you pay for it now, but then pay you back."
"Well, we'll pay for AT LEAST $500 without you paying us back. Then we'll see how the rest goes. We WANT to help you guys with this stuff."
B came home a few minutes later, and I had to break the news - all of it.
He said we could borrow the money from M and pay it all back. I told him what M had said about the $500.
At first, B said no. But then, we discussed how his dad had done over $2000 worth of labor FREE when he put our floors in. I said, "M doesn't have the time or know-how to help us with stuff like that. But what he DOES have is the ability to PAY for stuff like that."
B finally agreed, and I called M. So, long story short, Uncle C is coming out to put in the new AC unit tomorrow, with B's help.
...........
And so this collapse has been temporarily avoided, I suppose.
I spent a long time in prayer before I got out of bed this morning - mostly praying for B.
In addition to all the financial stress and everything else that comes along with cleaning out the old duplex, B is in classes... VERY DIFFICULT classes.
He's suddenly hit a course that he simply does not understand. Last night, he was in tears as he was describing it to me.
He will sit and write down everything the professor puts on the board... but, as he put it, "there is a mental block; [his] mind just doesn't work that way."
He just can't seem to get it.
And so I prayed this morning. I prayed for him to rely on the Lord with all this financial stuff. I prayed that he wouldn't consider the burden to be all his own.
And I prayed for the Lord to open his mind and help him understand the material.
B is not used to failing - at anything. I prayed that this experience would bring him closer to Jesus, as he would need to rely on Him more for understanding.
And that was my prayer this morning as I ran my fingers through his hair, watching him sleep.
He is getting ready to take a quiz in that class as we speak. Would you mind whispering a little prayer for him too?
........
Going to go finish cleaning out the old duplex tonight. Certainly not looking forward to doing all that work without AC. Oh well.
Despite all this, and despite the lack of sleep caused by all this, I do feel a bit more emotionally stable today than I did yesterday.
I suppose it was this morning's much-needed prayer time.
Thanks so much for all your sweet sweet comments! You all are such a blessing to me!
Okay... I'm off to work.
Bye!