Prayers would be much appreciated!

Once again, it has been quite awhile since the last time I blogged. :( I just can't seem to find the time. I really should make the time though because it is very therapeutic for me.

Anyway, I wish I was posting something exciting and uplifting, but I'm not. I'm posting because I am completely and totally stressed out, worried, scared, sad, you name it. I'm trying not to be because I know God is going to take care of it all, but it's so hard NOT to worry. I've always been a worrier.

Here's what is going on...Joey is the maintenance manager at an apartment community. The company that owns his property also owns three other properties here, and a bunch of others in Texas as well as other states. Ever since last summer the company started telling all of the employees that they had an investor that was going to come in, become a partner, and give a bunch of money to the company for them to invest in all of the properties (improving/ adding on, etc.). Well, about four months ago they began missing paydates. Joey would be expecting a paycheck on a Friday, and it wouldn't be there. In the beginning the company was very apologetic and made sure everyone was paid the following Wed. Then, as time went on the paychecks started coming later and later, until eventually they were getting paid two weeks late which meant they were due for another paycheck on that date and they were right back at square one of being behind in the payroll.

I knew something was not right, I could feel it inside (it was that woman's intuition, you know what I'm talking about ladies!). I told Joey that I had a feeling the company was not telling the truth and they were probably about to go bankrupt. Joey didn't want to believe me at first. I can't say that I blame him, afterall he had put lots of hard work and dedication into this company. He also wanted to believe the best of the owner and wanted to think he was telling the truth that they were just waiting on the investor. However, as time went on and the paychecks continued being late, Joey began to see what I was talking about. The e-mails from the owner of the company became a joke. Everyone knew he was lying. Other employees of the company began making up anonymous e-mail accounts and sending e-mails out to the entire company talking about how badly they were being treated, and how much of a liar the owner was. Eventually the owner's e-mails quit coming, he quit updating everyone on where their money was, and he quit apologizing. We also found out the company owes other businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars for work they performed, and were not paid for.

About a month ago Joey began faxing his resume to other places, hoping he would find something else before everything came to an end. Unfortunately we had no such luck. He was supposed to have been paid two weeks ago, and we still haven't seen a dime. I can't tell you how stressed I've been not knowing when the money is coming and if we are going to be able to pay our bills.

This past Friday, late afternoon, Joey got the call that the company is voluntarily giving up all of their properties for foreclosure. The company no longer exists. They have abandoned all of their employees, and the owner did it all without saying a word to his employees that have stood by him for MONTHS now. They all continued coming to work and doing their job, even when they weren't getting paid. They remained loyal to this company, and now it was all for nothing.

All this said, we really don't know what is going to happen. We have been told that the bank will become the new owners of the properties. They will supposedly come in this week and interview Joey to see if he can keep his job. I can't tell you how upsetting it is to watch your husband go through all of this and then to see the look on his face when he found out he has to re-interview for the job he has worked so hard at for the past two years. Utterly devastating is all I can say.

Some of you know this, but we also live at one of the properties owned by the company, rent-free because Joey works for the company. This has been a HUGE blessing to us because we only have one income since I am in school full-time. So, we have no idea what is going to happen to that situation either. If the bank sells the properties, we may have to move, and there is no telling if the new owners will let us live rent-free. We have no money for rent, so I have no idea what we will do.

Wow, I wrote alot. If you have read this far, BLESS YOU! I just needed to get it all out. I've been holding alot of that stuff in for quite awhile. So, basically I would like to ask you to PLEASE please please keep us in your prayers. Please pray that when (if) the bank comes this week that they first of all pay Joey all of his back-pay. Please pray that God would be in the room when they interview him, and that he would be able to keep his job (and maybe even get a raise since he is due for one this month, how amazing would that be!). Please pray that we would be able to continue living here rent-free. Please pray for our sanity. This situation has been more stressful than words can say, and I'm having to deal with it all on top of the stress I'm already under with school.

We are believing God for a miracle and I can't wait to come back here and tell you all about it! :)
Love you all!