Facing My Giants

We just completed week 7 of my online Bible Study of Stressed-Less Living.  Right now we are facing some real giants in our lives.  First, in April we received a diagnosis of Lactose-intolerance for our oldest son.  It is proving to be quite challenging to figure out all the things that have milk hidden in them.  Of course, the size of the print for the list of ingredients doesn't really help.  We expected with the diagnosis to have more good days rather than bad.  But it doesn't seem to be working out that way.

I have two vans rights now that need work done to them.  One (of course it has to be our 12 passenger van) needs a new transmission, which is going to cost around $3000 (it may be more if they need to replace the radiator).  Then our Chevrolet Venture needs brake work done.  I am not sure exactly what the problem was.  A couple of years ago we had some brake work done on this same van.  Ever since then, we have had trouble with our anti-lock brake system.  We tried to get the shop that did the work originally to fix their mistake.  However, they refused to do anything - stating everything was fine with the vehicle. Recently, the van's brakes are really not working right.  So something has to be done.

Then my husband is getting ready to leave for his annual training (which he and his unit was supposed to have satisfied when they went to New York in November to help with the Hurricane Sandy relief effort.  So I get two and half weeks of being a single mom while trying to make sure everything is ready with our portfolios for the state of Pennsylvania.  When we moved from the Greensburg-Salem School district, I was devastated.  The people in that office were wonderful.  They made life easy - as long as you met the requirements of the law.  They actually believed and trusted when your children had their evaluations the person doing those evaluations knew what they were doing and accepted their proof.  However, we are now in a new school district that is going to be more challenging to deal with this year.

On top of everything, we have yet to get our income tax refund.  This is the money we use to buy our homeschool curriculum for the next year, take vacations and do necessary repairs (in the case of this year - getting the work done on our vehicles).  So we sit here with no money to do the repairs - meaning we have no safe vehicle that everyone can fit in.  So it is a really challenging time.

Yet I have turned all these over to God and have a certain peace about everything.  Because I know God is in control.  Even though everything may not be done in my time or the way I want I still can have peace.  Plus the Bible states in Jeremiah 29:11-13:   For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.