Frugal Fridays - What to do when the paycheck doesn't come...

I had originally planned a post on the public library today, but in light of everything that is going on I felt like I needed to change that. 

My husband called home today to say that he will only be getting a part of his paycheck on the 15th and NO paycheck on the 30th.  Yes, we will be getting retroactive pay once they get this whole Government Budget thing figured out, but who knows when that will be.  So what does one do when the paycheck doesn't come?

1.  REJOICE & PRAY

I do not place my trust in a paycheck, and therefore I am not afraid.  My heart belongs to God.  My trust is in HIM alone.  I know I serve a God who "will meet all your needs acording to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:19). 

"Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."  (Phil 4:4-6)

2.  Be Content

"I have learned to be content in whatever the circumstances.  I know what it is like to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do everything through him who gives me strength."  (Phil 4:11-13)

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matt. 6:19-21)

3.  Evaluate

No one can serve two masters.  Either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and Money.  Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.  Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more valuable than they?" (Matt. 6:24-26)
Who is your Master?  I have been reading Michael Bunker's book Surviving Off Off-Grid: Decolonizing the Industrial Mind, and I only wish he had published this a few years ago.  Oh how relevant it is to our time.  We need to evaluate our minds and revolutionize our thinking.  I am thankful for this "test" of no paychecks because it reveals who our master is. 

4.  Choose the Good Way

"This is what the LORD says: 'Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls'" (Jeremiah 6:16)

I believe that God has brought our family to the crossroads, and we can either choose the industrialist/consumerist path or the ancient agrarian path.  It is so hard to seek the ancient path because we have wandered so far from it.  So much knowledge has been lost. 

Which brings me back to #1: PRAY!  "God teach us, lead us, and guide us.  Amen."

http://agrariannation.blogspot.com/