$$$$$$$

Why do we absorb what the world tells us we need to do? I feel like the TV is always telling you to buy buy buy because they are always advertising cars, clothes, food, and anything else you could buy. It makes it extremely hard when you are trying to save money. It also sucks for when you do great at not spending money, because that means you have just sat at home all day doing nothing, because it is very hard to go out in our day and not spend any money while you are out and about.

Why does money have to be so important? I see so many friends who are in the same boat as me and Jon, but it isn't an encouragement like I wish it would be. My friends facebook status just a couple minutes ago was, "Will we ALWAYS have to worry about money? Will it ever end!?" That is how I feel.

Then I remember marriage counseling, and the stat that $$$ is the #1 cause for divorce now. And that is scary. So when do we stop worrying and how do we stop spending on things that we don't need and food that we don't need to eat because we have food at home. Well, it starts by trusting God.

GOD. It seems too simple doesn't it? It is too, but God is truly the answer. I think that if you aren't a Christian and you are married that you are going to have an even bigger struggle with this. The reason, Because God isn't at the center of your marriage. The only way you can make it through these tough times of money struggles is to rely on God. Have Him be the center of your marriage. That also goes to help with so many other areas of life as well.

God has blessed us beyond belief, not just financially lately, but with our wonderful families, with jobs, with running cars and not having car payments. I so easily look past all of that and complain that we don't have enough money, we don't have this we don't have that. I am selfish. I am tired of being selfish. I am going to change.

Jon and I made a goal this weekend to not spend any money on eating out or entertainment, and to also carry that into the week and not spend money on coffee runs, pop runs, lunch out with the guys, all those little expenses we accumulate through out the week. We have looked at our money and our bank statements and have realized that we have a lot of useless spending that is happening, when we really should be saving that money, and paying the loans that we keep saying we don't have money to pay.

December is going to be a different month for the Randall household. We have looked at our money, what is coming in and what has to go out for bills and realized that we really do have an excess of money. That we have plenty of money actually to be paying our loans... all of them. But we are selfish and think of our wants first and our bellies, and then that money disappears and has actually gotten us into a lot of trouble.

My prayer for us is that God would continue to convict us of our selfishness and that we would be way wiser in our spending. That we would only spend money on what we HAVE to, like bills and groceries, and that the rest would be used to Glorify God. We can do this, and I believe that it will be hard, but God is at the center of our relationship and if we keep drawing towards God and relying on Him and working hard as well, God will continue to bless us and teach us from the error's of our ways. We will emerge triumphant! :)