The Journey to a New Home

The journey began about two years ago when I got married.  Two years prior to our marriage Matt had purchased a foreclosed home with the intent of making profit, so I moved out of my cozy chick apartment and moved into his bachelor pad.  Basically, the house came with the husband.  My job was to turn the man cave he called home into a charming home that we both wanted to live in.  We soon agreed to sell the home, and the journey of finding a new home quickly picked up pace.  By November of 2009 there was a “FOR SALE” sign in the front yard.

What happened in the next year completely tried my patience. Matt and I both wanted the end result of SELLING the old home and BUYING a new home.  How we planned on getting to that end result was very different.  Without losing money, I wanted to sell the house quickly and take advantage of the buyer’s market.  Matt, on the other hand, is far more patient than I.  He decided to price the home high and wait for the right buyer to fall in love with our home.  After a few months on the market, there was little interest in the home, so we pursued the option of renting the house to responsible tenants.  At one time, we actually had renters ready to sign a contract, and a bank had accepted our offer on a foreclosed home that was a fantastic buy in a great neighborhood.  At the last minute, Matt got cold feet about holding two mortgages, and we both agreed to back out of the deal.  I was devastated.  I didn’t think that we were ever going to see a deal like that come our way again.  Boy was I wrong!  God had bigger plans.  God taught us a valuable lesson about communication from that experience.  After it was all said and done, I decided to stop looking at homes, because I was getting too attached to something that God had not yet decided to give me.  The Lord had to bring me to a place of contentment about the home that He had already provided for us.  In time, we agreed to keep the house on the market, but lower it to a more reasonable price.  We also agreed to no longer consider renting; selling was the only option. 

Spring, summer and fall had passed, with little interest in the home.  We were going to take it off the market at the end of the year, but God's plan was so much better than our own. After being on the market for over a year, we finally got an offer!  There are many details that went into the five week process of selling our home and moving into a new home.  Looking back, I can see God working through the entire process.

       

 

We have lived in our new home for a little over a month now, and the journey to a new home has come to an end.  The new home met all of our requirements and more: price, location, square footage (3,600 sq. ft. plus a basement), open floor plan, two story entry, huge master suite with a fantastic master bath and closet, huge loft that looked over to the first floor, great lighting, and a basement that could be finished to add value to the home.  It is completely livable for the time being, and with the money we saved on the home we will be able to make the home our own (ie: paint, update light fixtures and hardware, hardwood floors, new bathroom fixtures, and plenty room to express our taste in new furniture and décor).  Each day we thank the Lord for His goodness to us.  Tonight I needed to remind myself of that goodness.  I needed to remind myself that God could have at any time closed the doors to this house if He didn’t want us to have it.  Through unexpected circumstances that have occurred over the past week involving our home, my humanity has caused me to doubt.  I have doubted and questioned God this week, but who am I to question the creator of the world.  God is faithful, and over the past year He has taught us that His plans are far better than our own.  The journey to our new home may be over, but the Lord has other paths that He wants us to journey in order to grow our faith. Even in the circumstances that occurred this week, I will thank God for all He has done and trust Him to provide all of our needs.