I suppose a small update is in order, since it has been almost a month since I posted last. Spiritual, the most important one, shall be a separate post.

1. Finances - They're going great. I have a dented fender I wasn't ready to pay for, but thanks to budgeting and a clean credit card (unfortunately), I am in a much better position than I was a year ago to deal with this situation, praise God.

2. Job - I like my job overall. I love the company I work for. Right now I spend the mornings in misery answering phones, but the afternoons are getting better each week. Overall, it's great. That being said, I applied for a promotion, and have yet to hear back on it. It is quite a considerable promotion outside of my department. Because of that, it needs the approval of everyone in that department all the way up to the VP in charge of that department. THEN it goes to the CEO/Owner of the company to approve. She only reviews those on Fridays, so the next few fridays for me will be nerve-wrecking as I wait to hear her decision. I have heard this whole process could take up to several weeks. Not easy for an impatient guy like me, but I'll live.

The position is a purchasing/inventory analyst position. After hearing more details about it, I'm still torn on whether to take it. I would be in charge of our Canada and Mexico branches in terms of inventory, both in getting shipments from our main distribution center to placing orders locally. The good parts are that I will be transferring to the corporate headquarters here in town when they move up here. Every year, I am required to go visit the branches I am in charge of at least twice, which means several trips to Canada and Mexico on their dime. I would be more visible company wide, as I will also be backing up other analysts and writing all sorts of reports that may go all the way up the ladder. I also would be in the office for 6 hours, and home the other 2. The bad parts are that the hours at home would be from 7:00-9:00pm, Monday through Thursday. I need to be available during those hours to review inventory after our Mexico branches close for reports that are due that night.

So, we'll see. I pray for God's wisdom in this. Please pray also.

First off, let me ask for prayer. I am sick, and i have a ton of errands to run today, a 12-hour shift tomorrow, and then the Philosophy Presentation on Sunday. I need strength and health.

But let me share the real reason for this post.

I am a horribly undisciplined person. Most of you know that already. I am finding the road to discipline is ridiculously difficult. The problem is, you need discipline, to beget discipline, at least so I thought. Worse, discipline applies to EVERY area of your life, and I have been undisciplined in them all; finances, study, work, time management. all of these areas I have been horrible with.

To make matters even worse, I swear I am not progressing as fast as I would like, nor as fast as others would like from me.

All that to say, I feel more defeated lately than ever, except in one area, where God has graciously chosen to allow me to excel in my discipline.

Finances.

As I type this, I am preparing to drive to Wheaton, Illinois, to go to my former bank when I was in school there. I will go in, sit down with a banker, and slide a several thousand dollar check across the table with a smile on my face.

***I will have paid off my car loan in 42 months, instead of 60 months like the loan was originally for.***

Sweet financial freedom, I can almost taste you.

But I cannot savor this victory long. I still am horrible with time management, work, and my studies, not to mention the next stack of bills I have to pay. I am more than defeated in these areas, so please add that to your prayer lists as well.

Anyway, I'll let you get back to whatever you're doing. Thanks for listening!

No disclaimers. Just news.

I went and saw an opera in Milwaukee a few weeks ago. Amazing stuff. I wish I could go more often.

I guess you could call my last 48 hours “crappy.” It started Tuesday morning when I got a parking ticket for being parked on the wrong side of the road. The rest of the day went fine until that evening. I went to go give a car-less friend a ride home from work. Then, BOOM, a huge tree branch landed on the hood of my car while driving, denting my hood pretty badly and cracking my windshield. I was thinking, “great, at best, it’s a $500 deductible. Why is it that whenever I have a bonus check coming up, something bad happens to my car?” I tried really hard to be positive and give it to God. I wasn’t doing a very good job of it, but I was trying. Wednesday I got to work, only to be pulled into a meeting with a group of my coworkers. The Branch Manager had something to say, and he didn’t seem too happy about it. That’s when he announced that the company was forced to make some tough decisions, yadda yadda yadda, some people were being laid off. I was scared a little bit, since I was the most recent person they hired. Yet I trusted God that if He could give me a job here, He could give me a job anywhere. I found out I was being kept, but it was more than a little sobering to leave my cubical and see one of the managers cleaning out the desk of the lady who sat behind me.

But, to be honest, none of that made the last 48 hours crappy. What made it crappy was coffee with a friend last night. We sat and talked philosophy. Yet the more we talked, the more anguished I could tell he was. But despite claiming to be a Christian, he does not embrace the hope that we have in Jesus. That “God works for the good of those who love Him,” that God will bless and prosper us (although both of those references are all to often interpreted extremely poorly, such as “God will give me whatever I want this side of heaven.”) That’s what broke my heart. None of those promises helped him, and I felt useless trying to assure him of them.

One last note, then I must depart. I am moved in. I have a house literally just down the street and within eyesight of the church. It's been ok so far. It's not everything I hoped for, but what place ever is this side of heaven? I’m living with two close friends, but we’re in different stages of our lives. I’m ready for “parties” to mean cookouts, or inviting guests over for dinner, or, at craziest, staying up til midnight playing video games! Ooooo! They still think college when they think parties. I don’t know. I’m just so ready to be settled in some where. When I left home at 18 after graduating high school, I swore I would never come back to keNOWHERE (my favorite nickname for this town). I never came back home for the summers from college or anything. This has resulted in a nomadic lifestyle that means I have moved 13 times in the last 7 years. Needless to say, I am doing everything I can to get unpacked and to feel as settled as possible. Once that’s accomplished, I’ll start having guests over.