Fun times...

It has been awhile since I have blogged, and for that I feel kinda bad.  It's not that I didn't want to, but finding the time to share all thad God has been walking us through can be kinda difficult.  So here is my attempt to briefly describe where I have been at with God...

It has been a rollercoaster ride lately.  One of those coasters that seem to shoot straight up to the clouds, and then you make a 180 degree turn and plummet down to the ground only to shoot straight back up again.

Last week, we took a trip to N'Awlins, LA - which was awesome.  We got to see a good friend of ours, visit our old stomping grounds and the school I used to go to, and eat a lot of amazing food while listening to some of the best music ever.  It was great - but leading up to and then on the tail end of the trip, we have been under some of the fiercest spiritual battle I have ever faced.

1 - Due to a mistake on a ticket I received for not having current registration, I was suppose to have an "arraingment hearing" on the 27th of April for a FATALITY mistakenly marked on the ticket.
2 - That never really happens so there is no precedent, which means finding the right person to talk to is almost impossible.
3 - The hotel we were suppose to stay in which NEVER fills up, due to our procrastination because of the ticket problem, FILLED UP!
4 - Our friend fell and hurt her ankle and heel really bad, right before we spent a week walking all over the city
5 - On Tuesday of our vacation my son fell down some stairs, landed on his head and had a lump the size of a golfball most the week
6 - When we got home, our AC had broke so our house was 92 degrees!
7 - Stayed with my parents for 2 nights and 3 days (blessing), unable to sleep well because of staying on air mattress
8 - Some spiritual attack occurred on Sunday (as it always does) but that will remain vague...
9 - Quote from AC company number 1 - 2400 dollars (here's where you put the heart attack at)
10 - Decide to wait - and I drive all the way to Tampa yelling and wrestling with God and my flesh about the money!
11 - God puts me in my place, fills me with His Spirit and makes me okay with spending that much money to fix an AC unit on a house we have a contract on and aren't going to be living in much longer.
12 - What happens? I get a call from another company, that promises to save me a lot of money and that I am being ripped off by company number one.
13 - One more night in mom and dads house.
14 - AC guys from Accu-Temp come out and FIX our unit for $350!
15 - Last night, we were able to sleep in our own bed, in our own house, and woke up late this morning!

So, I know towards the end it got less into the attack and more into the provision from God - but it has really been a cool last couple of days!  The battle can be so fierce that I at times, was just a wreck.  Monday, I was driving to help out with a ministry called Amazing Love in Ybor.  They feed the homeless, and have a worship service for them.  I want you to catch this perspective for a second...I am driving, in my air conditioned car, to feed people who sleep on the streets and are not sure where their next meal, shower, or bed is going to be - and I am fighting with God about how "bad" my situation is! And how unfair he is being!

Yeah, here is where conviction goes.

In the car, I actually told God that I was going to praise Him in my circumstances, but my heart was praising to make God feel like a jerk for being mean to me!  I don't know if I can communicate this accurately, but I felt like if I told God how awesome He was, while He was being a jerk to me, He would realize how big of a jerk He was being. (I realize my theology was terrible, but it was what I was feeling)

Then, a funny thing started to happen - as I praised, God softened my heart, and the praise become real, instead of manipulative and guilt.  He opened my eyes to all the ways He had provided for us, and showed me that He had blessed us with the money to pay for the repairs, given us a cool place to sleep every night, and that if He chose to use His money to fix our AC, so be it - why should I complain and argue with Him.

So, I repented and that night - after God made me willing and joyful about paying $2400 to fix our AC, I got a call telling me that it could be fixed for $350!

And so, here I sit - excited about the future, full of love for my Daddy, and hopefully a little wiser and more trusting of Him.