Under the Median: Hope and Encouragement Are Found Down Memory Lane

My husband and I have been cleaning out some old papers. I have a tattered, manila folder, stuffed with 30 budgets - 1 for every year of our marriage.

Our first budget from 1988! Just $1213 a month!

I thought that was all that existed of our early years of figuring out how to live within our means.

But, no!!! My husband just unearthed this little gem! This is our very first daily accounts book from 1988.

We sat for an hour and read entries, which told the story of our early married life. Our income was a little over $1200 a month. Our apartment rent, $290, was too expensive, so after four months of marriage we "prayed in" our little one bedroom 550 square foot rental home. I tell the story of how God provided our first home in this post. The home had five rooms, just one closet, and a bathroom which was so small that we decided it probably began its life as a pantry. The price was certainly right! Even back then rent of $200 a month was unheard of. But, there was one hitch. It had no appliances and we had just $150 to our name to get both a stove and a refrigerator.

As we read through the entries, we both laughed hysterically as we remembered trying to find a working stove. If you look closely at the entries, you'll see that started out with an apartment-sized stove. The word "mistake" was scrawled next to the entry.

The owner assured us that it worked flawlessly. We happily paid her $60 asking price and took it home. We hooked it up, set the oven thermostat to 350 degrees and waited. The stone cold interior attested to the fact that not everyone is as honest as we are!

The next week, my husband's boss gave us a stove from his basement. He cautioned, "The heating element sticks a little. Just reach under it, and hit it with a yardstick when you want to use the oven."

Hmmm... it was a little more difficult than he indicated and his "oven starting technique" was not nearly as reliable as we had hoped.

Back to square one, we wound up selling both malfunctioning stoves to an appliance repair place, getting back $40.00. Whew! Now we were at least close to being "even".

A final entry in the saga says, "Refrigerator and Stove. Praise God! They work! $140.00"

Larry had found an 1960's gas stove and a fridge from the 1950's at a garage sale. He offered the owners $140 for the pair. It was all the money we had! They were old, but they both worked great! In fact, when we vacated the little rental home four years later, we left the stove and refrigerator for the next tenants. For all we know, they are still there!

As we reviewed the ledger entries, spanning our first 36 months of married life, we were stunned to see how, even in those short 100 itemized pages, it was clear that God had been meeting our needs in real, meaningful, and amazing ways!

We closed the book, with a renewed sense of thankfulness and a prayerful reminder that although our life has changed in some very unexpected ways, that God is still on the throne. He is still in the business of answering prayers. He will continue to meet our needs as we move forward into the next phase of our life's journey.

So, today, as we head through the first month of a new year, I encourage you to spend an hour taking a trip down memory lane. Think back over the past year. What were your challenges, stumbling blocks, triumphs, and joys? How did God express His love toward you in little ways, which He knew you would appreciate?

Make a plan for your finances, faith, and family in 2019. Write down those short, medium, and long-term goals! But, do it with a renewed sense of hope and joy.

If you need some help getting started on your budget or goal-making, here are some popular posts filled with tips for starting the new year.

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