I want to tell you a story about my friend Jan. Jan is a teacher at one of our local schools and she is one of the friendliest persons I know. She loves teaching and wouldn’t trade her job for anything. What’s more, she is a single mom herself so she knows the value of a dollar and how to make it stretch. Yet, like so many others, she had a problem not too long ago. That’s where our story begins.
It was late one cold January night when Jan called me, “Steve, I don’t know what is wrong! My heater isn’t working and the temperature inside the house is falling fast. Can you come over and look at it?” I bundled up and headed over the Jan’s to take a look. Unfortunately, the news I had for her wasn’t good. It looked as if the electrical box on the side of her furnace went out. I told her that she and her daughter could come and stay with me for the night because it was going to get mighty cold!
The next day, the repairman gave her the bad news — $800 worth of bad news. Now Jan doesn’t make a lot of money – what teacher does? – but she always pays her bills on time and keeps a...