The one about the pink puddle

So I’ve not posted for several days and I wanted to bring you up to date on some of the reasons why I have been too busy.

It all began with a pink puddle on Sunday and the consequences of that puddle have consumed my week.

During Monday we discovered that:

• A pink puddle = a broken water pump.
• A broken water pump = you need a new cam belt
• Parts and labour for all the work = £418
• A 12 year old car that has done 150000 miles that needs £418 spent it with an MOT coming up is not worth repairing.

On Monday afternoon we went and looked at a few cars. We looked at a large 7 seater and we also looked at a newer (than 12 years old anyway!) Zafira (type of car that we have been driving) which is a smaller 7 seater.

We have a family full of people who are getting bigger and who are mostly asking for more leg room in the car and really the Zafira had become a bit small for us when we were on long journeys. We know that this is true and have talked about it for over a year, but have done nothing about it.

We have also strongly suspected for over a year that our beloved Zafira was coming to the end of its life but rather than save up for a new car, we have used any spare money to overpay on our mortgage to reduce what we owe on that.

I have been in a situation where I knew that change was really needed but that I have buried my head in the sand and so I haven’t prepared for and moved towards it. Life is so often like this, where we hide from the inevitable and then when a crisis occurs we can easily collapse, feel betrayed or feel that everyone is against us.

My car broke down and is no more. Instead of complaining, I want to accept responsibility. I don’t want to say poor old me, rather I want to face up to the reality of what went on and admit that we should have looked at newer cars at least a year ago.

One of the problems we can face when things go wrong is that we can feel under pressure to fix things quickly. We needed a new family sized car and we also had a bouncy castle to deliver on Thursday and today (Saturday). With all of this in mind, we nearly bought a Zafira on Monday afternoon and that is where our story would have ended but I am glad that it didn’t.

I believe that a quick decision is often the wrong decision and certainly this would have been true on Monday. When we feel under pressure, pausing to think really can save us from making bad or the wrong decisions.

I was feeling really fed up about life on Monday early evening when I took a phone call from someone whose wife had died. Instantly, my problems were put into perspective. It is really easy to become consumed with our own issues to the point that we can forget that the people around us are living with difficulties and problems as well. I hope you will join me in praying for this family as they come to terms with their bereavement.

On Thursday, we bought a car that is a bigger 7 seater than we had in our Zafira. It feels like we have made a good choice that is right for our family. The girls came on a test drive with us and our youngest was so taken with the car we were looking at that she offered her weeks pocket money towards the cost.

Between Monday and Thursday I rushed around. I had to arrange to scrap our old car, I discovered that it is possible to deliver a bouncy castle in a Nissan Micra and of I continued with my usual weeks work.

At the end of a stressful week, I believe that God has been good to us. Yes, that’s right, at the end of a really stressful and overwhelming week I believe that god has been good to us.

• We recently were on holiday and I’m grateful that the water pump didn’t break then, spoiling our holiday.
• We were driving a car that had really become unsuitable for our family and needed something to jolt us into action.
• We were due to MOT, service and renew breakdown cover in the next few weeks which would have cost at least £400. In buying a car at just this time, I have saved myself £400 and probably more.
• I was frustrated at not having a car to trade in for a discount, but I still managed to get £500 off the car price.
• My bank has given me a loan at a rate that is lower than my mortgage and if I choose to and am able to I can pay it off early. (Those of you who know me well know that I really hate paying interest on anything).

Life is so complicated, but God is at work.

Christians believe that God is with us and is wanting to guide us, but when we face stressful problems, it is easy to default to headless chicken mode and I have done some of that this week as well as getting some things right.

When we face problems and are feeling overwhelmed, will we still turn to God and let him lead?