Im having a really hard time right now..as usual there is never enough $ at the end/beginning of the month to cover everything but I KNOW that God provides for us, always has/does etc but Im very stressed. My "new to me" car is having issues and I just dont know how to deal with it, much less pay for or even cope right now. I bought my car last spring with my taxes, runs fine but then a light came on and has me very puzzled, I still dont know exactly what the problem is but from what I can tell its not good; I know sounds vauge but Im trying to remain positive on it so... Car repairs are NOT in the budget, future etc. I cashed out my PTO at work so I would be able to provide xmas this year but looks like that money will go to the car..hence that had me go to salvation army to sign up for the xmas program once again . Just when I think things are turning around, it doesnt. Like I said, Im trying to remain positive and have trust that it all will work out, but it gets so hard. At 34, ya'd think life would eventually work itself out..I put myself thru school(finished 2 certificate programs, still trying to go back for my associates), work a decent job, provide for my daughter with no assitance from her dad, Ive worked so hard this past year to get off state assistance(which I am!) and yet just cant get ahead or even a break...why is this? Anyways now IM just rambling..I need to go to bed and hopefully tomorrow will be a much bette day... thanks ladies!!
You should be so proud of all you have achieved on your own. I am sorry it is rough for you right now. I hope things get better soon and I will be praying for you. Beth
I hope and pray things will get better for you and your family. there always seems to be a hill we have to climb in life to get to the bottom. But, we always get up and back down again. Hang in there.
Melissa, I am praying that things will start to look up for you. Jesus is the source of all hope and peace. On a bright note, it is a blessing that you have the means to fix the car. You will still have a Christmas through Salvation Army. God promises to meet our needs and He has. You now have money to fix your car and something for Christmas. God will never leave us without. He promises to meet our needs. God bless, Patty
Amen, Patty! Those were good words! Melissa, you are carrying a heavy load. Our family calls tough situations "lemons." Then we work real hard to make "lemonaide" out of them. Sometimes we can't. But we start with being thankful. You have a darling daughter! I thank the Lord for her & that she has such a caring mother as you! If there are few or even no gifts, you can still always sing! My favorite memories of my youth include my mother's singing! God will help you make this season special for your dd. I'm praying that you will find JOY in this season of year & in this season of your life. And congratulations on all of your achievements! (I hope this doesn't sound trite or that I think your burdens are easy. I hear your pain & am praying for you.)
Melissa, I know how you feel when it come to the $. We never seem to have enough. Its so stressful. This month my kichen sink pluged to the point that we had to redo the piping in the house. (30 feet worth) and then the furnance didn't work. ($180 to fix) Then this is the month that the water bill is due. (haven't paid that yet) Plus all the regular bills and food and stuff. I could just scream!!!! I will also be going to slavation army for christmas. AT 35 I feel I should be doing so much better. I try to keep my head up, but it is so hard. I know the Lord will pull me through but I just want to crawl under covers and not come out. I will be praying for you and your family. Good Luck!!
Both of you ladies are in my prayers. Melissa, your daughter is blessed with such a hard-working mom who cares so much about her. I pray that things will get easier. On a side note...is child support an option? The father SHOULD be responsible. TN has toughed CS laws, but I don't know about where you are. Don't be too proud to fight for it. Your daughter (& you) deserve it if you can get it!
Right now CS is not an option, trust me I wish it was. Madison's dad was incarcerated for the last 5yrs, he is now out but can not find employment right now. we have seen him and talked to him but no luck on the job front. Trust me Im not too proud to fight for it, as soon as he is working I will go for it.
(((hugs))) I will be praying for you. God always provided even if it isn't the way we want him too. Don't feel embaressed to need to use the Salvation Army from Christmas presents. People give gifts to those because they want to bless others.
Be glad your health is well and your daughters. I know things are stressful and all but hang in there. God will provide what you need. I know we are living it too. Lorna
I will pray for you. Financial struggles are especially difficult around the holidays. Please don't stress over it. Just keep your eyes up toward the Lord. This will be a very tight christmas in my home also. I felt really bad about that. Then I thought of doing things with my kids instead of all the gift buying and gift giving. We do a craft and bake every year....but I am going to do more special things. At first that was to "make up"for not getting a whole ton of gifts. Then I realized how grateful I am that God is teaching my family the importance of family tradition and family time instead of gifts that fad. My kids will not remember all the gifts they got but they will remember the time spent. They will look back and think this was the best christmas. In fact, I think this will get us to cut back on all the commercialism, (which we wanted to do anyway) when things improve. Hope that is an encouragement to you.
I feel your pains, I hope that you can find some one to take a look at your car that is a friend so you can just at least find out what kind of cost your looking at.--- we have a light that is always on in our van and my DH just put some tape over it because the light came on when there wan't a problem....... Ok, I know you can't do that you need to know whats really wrong. I hope things turn around for you. I know how stressed out you are, we've been there too.
Melissa, This is tough! These ladies have said some great things! Just know that we will be praying for you here! Ava Rose, can you maybe start another thread on what things you're planning for Christmas time? That might be a good thing that we can all add ideas to. I think it may help others see positive things to do during the holidays instead of feeling bad about not having enough to get presents or whatever! We don't have a huge money problem, but DO want to get away from the commercialism!
Yes, sometimes those lights are malfunctioning, and don't mean something is wrong with the car. On our very nice minivan, our warning lights malfunction and take turns going off. But it would be good if you have someone at church who could check it out for you. Sometimes churches will have a car day for single ladies, to help with minor things. I would ask. It will take some time to get ahead. It happens in little squirts that are so tiny, you don't even notice them, but in a few years, you look back and you can see where you've come from. Sounds like you are doing that, now with an education, and a job. It will happen. It just seems to take forever, I know. We only just now got our first real house, and 3 of our children are grown! I wanted so much to provide one for them when they were young. We so often compare ourselves to better off people in the USA - when I think we forget to realize that even the poorest people in the the USA live like kings compared to 3/4 of the earth's population. It will come, in God's timing. I'm impressed with what you are doing. I too, was single for a time, it was both the most challenging and most rewarding time in my and my childrens' lives.
What kind of light is going on in your car? What kind of car? Some lights are just warning about pollution control devices or regular service that needs done, but is not mission crucial. Google is a great source of information on things like this. If you reply I will try to ask my brother the mechanic what the light means for your make and model of car.
Im sorry I just saw this, Im babysitting for my g/f this weekend. anyways, it was the coolant light but I "think" I solved it. I think it just had water in it so I went and bought some antifreeze and havent seen the light since. Im going to have the radiator flushed in a couple weeks because since I added antifreeze to water, I dont want the ratio to be too great in the winter and since the water looked kinda dirty I really want to make sure thats all it was-radiator "dirt" and not anything worse. thank you for your reply!!
I know my engine light will come on in my van if I don't tighten the gas lid until it clicks 3 times. Isn't that crazy!!!!!! That came with trial and error of figuring out that everytime I bought gas the engine light came on and we weeded thru many ideas and ended up coming to the lid. Scott then looked thru the owners book that comes with your car. It has a little section on putting the lid on the gas properly. LOL Cars have a mind of their own. Lorna
