Getting a home ready to sell is one thing; actually selling it is another. The right buyer needs to walk through the door. Otherwise, your home could sit on the market for months.
Well, God brought the right buyer on the first day we showed the house. Not only did our home sell that first day, it was purchased for well over asking price. (I must emphasize: that is a serious miracle. My home price was already much higher per square foot than any home in our area. God’s favor enabled us to receive far more than any professional realtor would have imagined.)
So, the house was sold, and we had a closing date six weeks away. Yet, we still had no idea where we were going. I can say, however, that our desire to live in my family’s neighborhood exponentially increased with each passing day. So much so that we advised Debbie to halt her search for a home anywhere else. In a boldness rooted in faith, we stated that we would wait for the right home in that neighborhood, even if it took months.
After three weeks had passed, many of our belongings were packed and moved into storage. Our home became increasingly more vacant, and with it, I became increasingly more anxious. The thought of living with my parents long-term seemed inconsistent with the timely provisions God had given throughout this process. I believed God had done too much, paving the way with His astounding grace and favor, to leave us without a place to call our own. Still, the facts were against us. We were only three weeks from closing on our current home; what seller is willing to pack up and move in three weeks or less?
The phone rang. Debbie informed me, with reservation, that a home had listed in our desired neighborhood. “But,” she paused, “it’s the house that sat on the market for so long last year.” Unenthused, I replied, “Okay. Well, Ty may want to see it, so we’ll just meet you over there in a bit.” I thought to myself, “Oh, great. The ‘dented can’ of the neighborhood. This will probably be a waste of time.”
I had an attitude when we pulled up to the curb. My memory of the home was vague. (The first time I walked through it, I was shopping its estate sale, not house hunting.) However, I knew it had sat unsold for months while three other homes within one block’s radius were bought immediately. That must mean something was wrong with this house, so I determined I did not like it.
Tyler and I walked silently, soaking in every detail. With a critical eye, I opened every door and scanned every surface. With each room, my disposition softened. The closets were huge, every room had its own bathroom, and the kitchen was, in a word, perfect. When I rounded the corner into the massive laundry room, I saw a full length hanging rod. I knew right then we had to make an offer. Tyler felt the exact same way; he saw great potential in every room.
Immediately, we walked outside and said a simple prayer, “Lord, we are going to make an offer, but we do not want this house if it’s not Your will. Please, shut the door swiftly, if we are not supposed to have it.”
We officially submitted the offer around 5 o’clock and didn’t expect to hear anything for a while. After all, we were dealing with a manager of an estate who lived hours away. But, that very same night, Debbie called to congratulate us. Because the home was an estate, the sellers joyfully accepted a quick closing date. On March 14th, Ty and I gave up the keys to one house, but received the keys to a better one.
That’s how God often works, isn’t it? Before we can receive the new, greater thing He has in mind for us, we have to release what we’re holding.
Readying our previous home for sale cost Tyler and me time, money, and energy. It required patience, endurance, and faith. But with everything it asked of us, God amply supplied to us. As I shared last week, God brought timely aid, energized my physical body, and strengthened my spirit throughout the entire renovation process. Next, He swiftly brought a buyer to my home that was willing to pay over and above asking price. Then, He made sure that at just the right time, the right home, in the right neighborhood, would list by the perfect seller, one who would deem a quick closing date as desirable, not deterring. And, finally, He ensured our ability to afford the new home with the profit from our first. In fact, we had enough left over to pay professional painters to paint every peach wall, ceiling, and cabinet.
God’s plan was impeccable, and He carried out every detail with precision.
I’m fully aware that this home is a gift, one that I could not attain in my own strength. You see, Tyler and I are young; we don’t have professional degrees or lofty positions at work. To the world, we’re average, at best. Yet, we live in one of the best neighborhoods in town. How is that even possible?
The answer is simple: God.
You see, what is impossible with man is possible with God. Tyler and I could have worked tirelessly for years and never produced the amazing results God manufactured. We never could have lead the right buyer to our home on the very first day of listing. We couldn’t possibly have urged the sellers to re-list their vacant home on the right day. And, it was impossible for us to know that the profit from our first home was capable of covering the down payment on the next, plus paint. Of all the vital components to make this transition possible, Tyler and I are responsible for one. God asked us to get ready, so we did. In faith-fueled obedience, we offered Him our time, our energy, and our resources. From there, God multiplied our measly efforts into a full-blown miracle.
This is shouting ground, folks. Faith produces results when it’s met with obedience to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Blood bought believers do not have to work, toil, or labor frustratingly to produce results. (Yielding fruit by the sweat of our brow is part of Adam’s curse. See Genesis 3:17.) Rather, we can simply tune our ears to Heaven and boldly walk in the direction He leads. Every time, we will reap rewards greater than our own expectations. In fact, unbelievers around us will be astonished and confused by our seemingly effortless abundance, and those who are close to us will benefit from the overflow. In response, we can give credit where it is always due: Jesus Christ, our Lord, who uses the weak and foolish things of this world to confound the wise. Apart from Him, we are capable of absolutely nothing, and any effort we make apart from Him is useless.
“Except the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord keeps the city, the watchman wakes, but in vain. It is vain for you to rise early, to take rest late, to eat the bread of anxious toil–for He gives blessings to His beloved in sleep.” Psalm 127:1-2 (AMP)
