A Leap of Faith

The Jones fam 1990

We'd taken a leap of faith, praying that God would be with us and keep us from fear.  Psalm 37:25 became our motto:  "I have not seen the righteous forsaken nor his descendants begging bread." 

My husband had quit his dead-end job and we'd moved to the big city—just one month after our second child was born.  Because we'd had no health insurance, we were already facing a large hospital bill for a C-section.  But hubby's parents had moved to a different house and made a deal with us:  If we would help fix their old house and get it ready to sell, they'd rent it to us for the exact amount of their mortgage payment, which was much, much lower than the cheapest rent.

Since we'd already used up what little savings we had toward moving expenses and medical bills, our budget had no wiggle room.  At first hubby worked three jobs just to make ends meet.

Then two things happened that I thought were unrelated.  We received our first electric bill during a hot Texas summer and I almost fainted.  It was more than four times what I had budgeted!  We quickly discovered rats had chewed through the air conditioning ducts in the attic, and for an entire month our cool air had been escaping.  Duct tape fixed the holes, but now we had a bill that could not possibly be paid.

The next day an uninsured driver backed into our only car in a parking lot.  Thankfully there was no serious damage, although the plastic light covers on one side were broken and the fender dented.  Our insurance company acted so quickly we received a check just before the electric bill was due—in the exact amount of the bill!  We put reflective tape over the broken light covers and used the insurance money to pay for our electricity, which, with a new baby in the house, was much more essential than a nice-looking vehicle.

Our leap of faith reaped many rewards, including a better job for my husband, his parents were able to sell their house, we found a better place to live in a better neighborhood, and we were finally able to fix our damaged car.  But God's care for us during those lean times remains a testament to His faithfulness when we put our trust in Him.

At a family wedding 1990