Trusting

With our upcoming trip to Manila, we've been talking about all kinds of stuff. The one subject that has come up most, not at all surprisingly, is money. Our budget is not quite 'tight' right now. We have enough to live on, reasonably comfortably, pay all our bills, and save a small amount every month. It's OK, and if we were staying here it would be just fine. But since we're going to another country where we can't work for a year, it's suddenly much more important that we save all we can to cover our expenses while we're there.

We're trying to cut out unnecessary expenses... Like the sonic shakes we love, and eating out several times a month. Taking drives just for the fun of it, or buying new clothes. We're also trying to cut down on grocery expenses. Cliff is having a hard time with the "meat only 3-4 times a week" while I'm having trouble with the "dessert limited to 2-3 times a week."  We've always liked discount and second-hand shops but now even more. I've been cutting coupons, and trying to use things we already have instead of getting something different or new.

So far, God has already provided just enough money to get to Manila. We have the money for plane tickets, ad our visa's. That's all. We're going to need at least $200 every month while we're there to cover student loans and living expenses.Maybe as much as $250. We're trying to save enough to cover everything. But we've already decided that if we don't have enough support before we leave we're going anyway. We both feel like God is saying "I gave you enough to go, so now go and trust Me with what's left."

We're hoping to be able to raise support to cover whatever we can't save between now and when we leave. So we're working on writing support letters, and designing business cards to hand out. But no matter what happens, no matter how much we save or raise, we're going. Because we know that God will provide for us.