God's Plan is Always Better Than Ours!

Although seldom understood, God's plan is always to be trusted and never second-guessed. This is the realization my wife and I have come to learn over the last year in what turned out to be a trio of real estate transactions.

It all began in February of last year when we listed our home to sell. We were out of space and needed an upgrade. Our house had only a two bedrooms and one bath and the place had absolutely no storage or closet space. When we first bought the home nearly seven years ago, it was in very poor condition. As a matter of fact, when we brought our family through it, many left shaking their heads, wondering what we had gotten ourselves into. But we saw great potential to flip the house and sell it down the road. That road had dead-ended and we needed to look for something more suitable for our growing family.

Our seven years at that place saw many changes and the addition of two more children. We remodeled the entire house, added a new garage, deck, and walkways. It was a totally different place than what we had started with. We had also developed a great relationship with our neighbors and had opportunities to talk about how great our God was to us. They saw God's blessing on our family as we worked to improve our home and neighborhood.

That said, it was difficult to make the decision to move. But the timing was right this time, so we decided to pray that God would sell our home. Within a week of listing the place, we had several calls and were constantly cleaning the house for showing after showing. After two weeks, we had our first offer (which fell through) and after two months we had an accepted offer and the house sold for $20,000 more than we paid for it. At the end of May, we packed up and moved to my wife's grandmother's home. Nursing home care was necessary so her place sat empty and we were granted permission to stay there until we could figure out our next move.

It was my desire to find a place in the country with a little bit of land and in the back of my mind, Shauna's grandparents' home was the perfect place. It was, however, a bit more than we could afford so I didn't think too hard about it. Then, due to capital gains tax laws, the trust that owned the home was forced to sell it before May of 2014. Because it was family selling the home, they offered it to us for a great price and right before we were going to accept the terms, the trust discovered that the law dictated that they had to fetch a price that was 90% of the home's value.... Door Shut.

Serious house hunting was on and after weeks of searching, we came up with very little. We offered on a possible home in Oak Harbor... outbid. Door Shut. A foreclosure in Lindsey.... no luck. Another Lindsey opportunity (this one was it!)... our offer accepted... almost. The owner told his agent that he was going to accept our offer, but he pulled the home off the market because of an unfortunate job circumstance. Door not shut... Door SLAMMED! What was going on?

Thinking we had a little time before Grandma's house sold, we were in no hurry to look for a house. But after just a week on the market, it sold and we were forced to move again. To make matters more difficult, this all happened during all the busyness of the holiday season and the buyers wanted possession on Christmas Day! Luckily, we convinced them to let us stay until the first of the year.

Christmas came and went and it was time to move. In one week, we moved all of our belongings into two storage units and my in-law's barn and set up camp at my in-laws house. (Did I mention that I have the world's greatest in-laws!).  On the day of our big move, it was -11F. Not my idea of a good time.

With still no luck in the house search, and being very depressed about the idea of being homeless, I did the only thing left to do -- I let go of what I wanted and gave the whole situation to God. He had a plan that was obviously different than mine and I needed to quit fighting for what I wanted in a home. Shauna and I (as well as many prayer-warrior friends and family) began praying for His direction and His plan for us to be fulfilled.

A week after settling into my in-laws' place, the house hunt turned up a possibility several blocks from the home we had sold back in May. I really didn't want to look at this place because it meant us having to pay for city utilities and city tax, neither of which country folks have to pay. I wanted to get closer to work to save on gas and this house wouldn't accomplish that. But one thing had me interested... the price. It was a HUD repo and the list price had been reduced $30,000. I guess I'd give it a try... after all, I put it into God's hands so I felt I had to at least be open to the idea. So we scheduled a visit.

The walk-through went well. It needed a little work, but it was definitely suitable for our needs. The second walk-though with critical in-law eyes passed the test with flying colors. Offer time. Now, here is how certain I am of God's direction on this home: When we began praying for His direction, I got specific and put out a number that I didn't want to exceed. The asking price was over this price, not by much, but some. I countered below my number and they countered back at just above it. Diana, our agent recommended we accept since it was already a low price. As much as I wanted to, I felt very convicted to hold to my specific request. Doing so and having them accept it would be how I knew God was in it... how I knew it was the door he wanted us to go through. Diana, was on board, perhaps reluctantly at first, but she understood. We waited until word came back. Offer accepted... or shall I say... prayer answered.

Another friend of ours also got specific in her prayers for us. She prayed that God would give us a house before the end of February. We had asked to close on March 4, but they came back and wanted to close Feb. 28! How's that for answers! --Thanks Brooke!

It seemed so weird that this place, its location and its price was falling into our lap. Knowing how government repo deals work, we figured it was going to be a long process with many obstacles. But seeing how God was working in this specific deal so far, we were assured all would be okay. And it was. The whole purchase process went without a hitch and we actually closed a week and a half early!

Why did God want us back in our old neighborhood? That I cannot answer, but I'm sure He knows and I'm sure I will understand it in His time. But for now, I will continue to let Him lead and we will follow His plan for us. I know that doing so will never be regretted.

I know this is a long blog, but it was written mainly for the sake of this writer, not its readers. Yes, I do want others to see how God worked in our life, but more importantly, I want to always remember the details of God's plan and direction in our lives. I will return here often and read and be reminded to ever trust Him and let Him lead me. I also want my kids to read this one day and say, "Wow! I want what God wants for me. His plan is better than mine and it can be trusted... never second-guessed.

Thanks to my dad, who kept encouraging me with this verse:

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed. --Ps. 37-23-26