Living with Less....

Living with less....being 'creatively frugal'....enjoying the challenge...this is a subject that is near and dear to my heart! In the 20 years that we've been married, I think we've had approx. 6 years (and not all at the same time!) when money wasn't very "tight"...4 years of that time were when we were first married and both working. :) Hearts at Home blog is having a contest, about living with less...joyfully. They are promoting the above new book by Jill and Mark Savage "Living with Less so your Family has More"...check out the link to the article and the contest Click Here!.

Ever since I heard of this contest, it made me smile. Then I read a blog post by a very dear friend who is living in Africa at the moment, about the cost of some simple ingredients over there (for the blog post "Wow" from Dayna, click here) and had to chuckle to myself....for us, Feta cheese is a luxury we treat ourselves too a couple of times a year, for example.

With Ron's job so up in the air (whose isn't?), and knowing that come April 1st, our income will be drastically reduced one way or the other(his contract is up...he will either lose his job, or take a huge paycut) , Ron and I've been having lots of talks about planning, cutting costs even further, saving...and my wonderful daughters have entered into the spirit of things, by researching the Great Depression ( which is a time period all 3 of us are interested in), thinking up creative recipes, ways to make over clothes, different gifts to make...and I've recently commissioned my step-mom, the "Queen of yard sales" for a new food processor as mine bit the dust recently, and I can't BELIEVE how much a new one is or even replacement parts! (even to replace, it would be $100) I know I could live without one, but I got so used to using it almost daily, and with fibromyalgia, it really does save my hands a considerable amount of pain. :)

God is so very faithful, though! He constantly amazes us with His care and provision for our family! We thank Him and praise Him daily for our health and the blessings that we have, but when He does things like even provide for our "wants" as well sometimes...it blows us away! We are asking Him for the wisdom and guidance to manage our finances as well as we can...to give us 'creativity'....and to help us simply be content. And, I think that is the secret....contentment. Asking God for HIS vision for our particular family....as to what is important....how HE wants us to live. I enjoy the creative challenge of sewing a ruffle or two on the bottom of Anna's dresses to make them longer (she is growing so tall!)...mending rips in jeans or simply cutting them off for play shorts for Ronnie...taking in 'thrift store finds' for one of the girls, or making a quilt out of old squares of denim and some denim curtains I found at the thrift store....I love the challenge of creatively providing the healthiest meals that I can for my family (even gluten free) with the least possible cost. (thanks to all my friends and family out there who save turkey carcasses and ham bones for me!) I love having my little ones play imaginatively, and thinking that "helping" in the kitchen or yard or with chores is "fun". (yesterday, Ron replaced our broken kitchen light with one he found at Lowes for $15....I love it, it is very '50's retro' looking and Ronnie helped him with everything, learning about wiring at the same time)

Knowing ahead of time that our income WILL drop, has allowed us a little bit of flexability in planning ahead...lots of fun, memory making activities for the whole family that are free...we have fishing trips, picnics, bike riding, visits to friends and family planned....free use of the library (and we are so blessed to have a great library where we live!)...even a basketball hoop in the driveway that the Lord provided for free! We were even gifted with a Wii system for Christmas for those cold, rainy/snowy times that we want to do bowling or a more active game.

Living with less doesn't have to be a sacrifice....our family has found that it has actually brought us closer together, taught us so much....and allowed us to do things more as a family...whether eating meals together everyday, ministering together, working together....and I think that is a key lesson learned from the Great Depression...be grateful for just being together...be grateful for everything that you DO have....and as the song goes "Accentuate the Positive...Eliminate the Negative". (love that song!)

Most importantly, be grateful and content....as God's word says in 2 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." I think about this...being in His will....this IS His will for us....to rejoice, to pray, to be grateful and give thanks.....1 Timothy 6:6-8 says "Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing , with these we shall be content." We should actively cultivate contentment...and being content in His will is the best place to be!

One of the most important lessons that living 'creatively frugal' has taught my children is contentment...especially my 16 and 14 year old daughters. They are content with what they have....they think it is very silly to spend so much money on "names" from the "cool" stores....they are happy to have as many clothes as they do...most from thrift stores, K-Mart or Wal-Mart! They would rather have friends here for lunch and a visit than spend their money on lunch out, and they almost never go to the mall....having little money and actually little free time leaves that time waster out. Which is another lesson they have learned...they are busily productive. Yes, they have "down time" ...where they read, or watch a movie...but even when they watch a movie, they are doing handwork....or they are busy trying new recipes. Sara threw together the most wonderful lunch yesterday! She looked thru cabinets, pantry and fridge...and made a hot, delicious, healthy, vegetarian meal for all of us...I was so grateful and thrilled with her creativity!

I know, that thru this "living with less" journey our family is on, the blessings far outnumber the costs of doing without. My girls love the saying "use it up, wear it out, make it do...or do without"...and I do, too! I'm actually very glad that this is the Lord's will for us...the lessons He is teaching us all these years are invaluable...trusting in Him, looking to His provision, not worrying, cultivating contentment and gratitude...these are lessons that will stand our children in good steed when they are grown. Looking forward to new lessons that the Lord has planned for us....knowing that He will be in the center of them. Be blessed! ~Sue~