Good News!

Reporter: "Jim. How does it feel to announce some good news for a change?"
Jim: "Well Terry, it feels strange. I mean, Sarah and I have had a rough month."
Reporter: "Ain't that the truth."
Jim: "But I can't say that it's unexpected. We trusted God to take care of us, and He sure did."
Reporter: "Word up! True dat! You can say that again homey g-funk!"

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So the good news. Sarah and I made rent. Without a job, or a penny in the bank, we made rent.
I've been sparing you all the details of the government help we've been applying for during this recent crisis, simply because it makes for depressing writing. But I've eliminated the boring stuff, and here's the good. We're on our way to getting Medicaid which will move through the system fast because of Sarah's pregnancy, and will pay for the whole thing. Everything. We've also filed unemployment with Illinois, and for financial assistance here. All of those things will eventually come through, but until then it's gonna be tight. The people at the federal aid building referred me to the United Way, who in turn referred me to a group called the Northern Churches Care here on the north side. The first 2-4 people who show up in the morning on certain days can get assistance paying their rent. The doors opened at 9, and today was one of the days, so I showed up at 6:30. It was freezing, but worth it. A local girl named Nikki waited with me. Some slackers waited in their car, but we weren't losing our shot at help and spots in line by being wussies like them. Nikki's really struggling, and is pregnant now. She has a blood clot in her lung, and she found out her boyfriend is cheating on her last night. You find out alot about people when you freeze your butt off with them outside a church at 7 in the morning. I prayed with her, and we talked about our respective hardships. It was fun at times, as the crowd grew, so did the volume of the conversations, and the humor of the group. When we were by ourselves, Nikki offered something really nice after my sob story. She said that if I'd give her a ride back to her apartment (she'd been dropped off by her mom) she'd "bless" Sarah and I with $40 in groceries that she had left over in food stamp money. (Our food stamp money is pending approval.) That sounded awesome, so I said yes. The church ladies let us all in at 8:45, and we filled out paperwork and waited. By this time, I had apparently picked up the nickname "J" and was everybody's favorite person. As I was probably the most out of place person in the line. My number being 1, got called soon, and I went in for the interview for assistance. After reviewing our situation, the lady that took care of me (who happened to be the chairman of the organization filling in for someone who was sick) said that they could give us $150, and then she called Focus on the Family and they offered to give us $150 as well to pay for February rent! This was perfect, as a few days ago a couple from church offered us a loan of $300 to be paid back "whenever." $600! Just enough to cover our rent and utilities! I was sooooooo happy! After I got out of the meeting, one of the little old church ladies took me back to the food pantry, and they hooked us up with two bags of food! So I took that out to the car, and hung out with the rest of the motley crew until Nikki came out. We went over to the grocery store next door, and bought meat and vegetables and all the things that we can't get from assistance or on our own. It was so AWESOME! I felt like a kid in a candy store. I was like "Sarah likes those! And those!" It was really cool. I drove Nikki home, and went home to tell Sarah. We took the checks over to the office, and we're in the clear! What an amazing day!

There's more good news too. The chairman of the northern churches care told Sarah and I later today, that a woman from the city called, and apparently, her agency has a recent boost in money provided by the lawsuit against the smoking industry that is to be used for public programs, and they are using it for first time mothers with low income. Would she have anyone in mind for aid? Why yes... yes she would. So she's given Sarah the number of this lady, and after Sarah calls, apparently they come to your home and help you with the baby, provide diapers and other items, and help with anything you need during the first two years. What an amazing help. There may be a time when we don't need that, but for now, it's a God-send.

So that's today! What a day. I'm so glad that noone got there earlier than me, and really happy with the way the day turned out. Thank you so much everybody for your prayers, and thoughts, and comments on the blog. We are so grateful to have friends like you!