time to become a financial grownup

If one is going to be sixty, possibly one should start thinking more seriously about one's finances.  The power of denial is about to be broken!

We had some questions about the Canada Pension Plan because the rules are changing Jan. 1 2012.  Because my birthday is Dec. 27 I could legally retire at 60 3 days before the rules change.  Last year we really tried to figure this out, we asked several people and could not seem to get a straight answer.  The website was daunting.  So this year, with all this talk of change, I was really praying for a breakthrough when a lady from Welcome Wagon visited me at work, made her presentation and ended with "the last sponsor is my husband, who is a financial planner".  I had sandwiched this woman into a busy day in a busy week but that made the Holy Spirit light bulb go off in my head, so I told her if her husband could explain the CPP changes we would meet with him.

Of course he phoned with answers available, so now I had to put on my big girl pants and go see him.  I know we look like morons on paper, and now I was to be undone publicly.  I feared a fear and it came upon me!

I won't bore you with all the details, but here's what I learned: it's all about tax planning. Does everyone know this, and I am once again bringing up the rear?   I realized I don't even know how much we pay in taxes.  But that is about to change and there is nothing here I can't learn, even if it's my least favorite thing in the universe.

One day I was driving in a beautiful neighbourhood in Portland past gorgeous historical houses and I asked right out loud "what do you have to do to live in a house like that?"  I knew that there were a lot of professionals and money industry people there, but I realized that I am just as smart as any of them and I know how to work hard.  If my family had been in insurance or real estate or similar business I would have thrived in that environment; I probably would have done very well and could be living in one of those lovely homes.

But God knew what I needed and I was marked for ministry from an early age.  And now I live in a lovely historical home at peace with my family - priceless.  I have to trust that I'm smart enough to figure out what I need to learn to put our money in order for this season of life as well.  What a 60 project that is!