lifestyles of the rich...and not so famous...

"It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 

Mark 10:25

Thanks for the wake up call today, God.  I appreciate the reminder.  

Believe me, no sarcasm here.  I needed to read that verse today and God knew it.  

I've struggled lately with wanting more...home renovations and dreams of a bigger house, a nicer car, better clothes, smocked clothes galore for Sweet Petite...you name it, I've longed for it.  But right now, we can't afford any home renovations and I certainly can't afford smocked clothes galore.  Praise the Lord for hand-me-downs!  

We have spent the past few weeks identifying ways to trim our expenses.  Tory is working a side job on the weekends to earn extra money.  Don't get me wrong...the bills are getting paid, but there is not any extra for anything that is not a necessity.  And let's face it...a pedicure is not a necessity, a new outfit is not a necessity, a Krispy Kreme cup of coffee on the way to work is not a necessity, and a smocked dress for every occasion is not a necessity.

God chose today to reveal reality to me...I am rich...I am!!  I'm rich because I have a personal relationship with my Savior.  I may never be rich according to earthly standards, but I am extravagantly wealthy by eternal standards.  I never want to allow my "stuff" or lack thereof to interfere with my faith.  

My nephew, Carson, served as a messenger to me this week.  Yesterday,  out of the blue, he said to me, " And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."  That's Philippians 4:19.  To Carson, this is the verse that he learned at CentriKid this summer.  To me, it was a message from my Father for my aching heart.  Jesus was reminding me of all the blessings that I have in my life...and those blessings include a lot more than clothes, cars and a big house.  The Lord has blessed my family with friends who love us regardless of the size of our bank account or the square footage of our home or the labels on our clothes.  The Lord has provided my family with a home, not just a house...more clothes than we can wear in a season...a car that gets from point A to point B...and friends who pass along precious clothes to Sweet Petite, including smocked dresses. 

So this week, as I was thinking about champagne wishes and caviar dreams, God changed my heart...He turned those wishes and dreams into reality...His reality...the reality that I will enjoy eternal life walking the streets of gold and I am eternally blessed while on this Earth through my relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ.