Taxes

There are many things in adult life that I have really not enjoyed - mortgage payments, utility cost, expense of groceries, laundry, dirty bathrooms, etc... But one thing that I really don't enjoy are doing our TAXES!  I put them off every year and this year is no different. I am determined to accomplish them this week despite the fact that I really don't want to do them. Last night though I got to thinking about our taxes and how the last two years has been a funny spiritual journey with them. Let me explain.....
Since I am a realtor (or was a realtor) we have to do itemized taxes (loathe this)! And because of this it is often a question mark of if we will be receiving money or paying money in. Two years ago was my first year to sit down with Turbo Tax and go through the itemized tax process. I had no idea what I was getting myself into and it was miserable!  When it was all said and done we were blessed with a return! It happened to be that our return was just enough money to pay for my husband (Todd's) mission trip to West Africa. We literally received the money and handed it over to the church for his trip. So that turned out to be quite a blessing! Then last year we knew that we were probably going to be paying money in. I had a decent year for doing real estate part time and didn't have any significant write offs.  I was really dreading doing our taxes and knowing once we filed them that the reality of how we were going to pay for my husband's second mission trip to West Africa would sink in. I literally put them off until the last week of march. That Monday I told Todd that I would finish our taxes by the end of the week. On that Thursday our church mission council had a meeting and at that meeting offered to pay for the bulk of my husband's trip as the group leader. After receiving this news it gave me the push to finish our taxes and we came out dead even. After the cost of Turbo Tax, we didn't receive anything of have to pay anything in. Crazy HUH!?!
So here we are year three!  Itemized taxes waiting to be done. We have had some significant write off opportunities this year: had a baby, lots of hospital bills, didn't make much in real estate, etc... But yet I am dragging my feet. Because this year if possible, my husband and I would both like to go to do mission work in West Africa (the thought both excites me and frightens me). But that is a HUGE junk of change! If our Tax return covers a good portion then that means we could both go. If it doesn't that means its likely that this year again it would be just Todd making the trip. 
It is funny to me that as I was pondering my hatred for taxes, that it isn't just the work of the taxes that holds me back, but the meaning behind the outcome. It really has been a funny little joke with God about our taxes and will be interesting to see what he will have in store with us this year! 
So with that being said.. I am vowing that by the end of this week I WILL COMPLETE OUR TAXES!! Who knows what the outcome will be, but at least we will know :)

And who knows, maybe we'll both get to see some of these beautiful faces this summer???