"Home is where the heart is." Aww, doesn't that sound sweet? I'm sure that's partially true, but home is also a place you hang your pictures, a place you feel comfortable to walk around half naked, a place you feel ownership & responsibility, & of course a place your puppy accepts as his place to lounge around. I'm so happy & thankful to report: We've finally found it! We have been in transition for awhile & seemed we have just been waiting to actually have a home.
We had a great first house at Perry Street; it will always be our first home. But living on a busy corner took away our privacy & the sense of ownership & responsibility we wanted to feel, but just didn't. We didn't like being outside working in the yard while cars constantly drove by staring at us & playing obnoxious music. We knew pretty soon after we moved in that it was a temporary place for us. But thank God we had that experience. We learned more clearly what we were looking for & had many wonderful times with wonderful people in that house.
After the Lord worked a miracle & found us a buyer who paid our asking price, we set out to find the home we daydreamed about. God worked so quickly on our behalf that we didn't have time to find our next place! So our focus shifted for awhile to find a temporary place before we could move into the home we hadn't yet found. An amazing couple from our church offered to let us stay in their newly rennovated duplex for as long as we needed & it fit our budget! We were able to move in & out as needed & it served us perfectly. So THANK YOU Brian & Maria! I hope your generosity comes back to you a thousand times over!
The temporary duplex really was a HUGE blessing, however sometimes even blessings can be a bit... heavy. Take, for example, having a child. What a blessing! But is it easy & sprinkled with fairy dust all the time? Doubtful. Or, maybe, take the recent Colorado wildfires. In a strange way the fires may actually be a blessing. The forest needed to be resurrected, & to do that it had to die first. Does it make it a light blessing that many, including my aunt & her husband, must rebuild the homes they lost? No, but the blessing is found in what could be, what's ahead, & the love that spread throughout our community. Take the death of a young woman in the midst of pain, suffering, & tears as her body was overtaken by a monster we call cancer. Sometimes death can be a blessing in that we believe she has been released from the burden of the impurities of this world & is in Heaven rejoicing! But is that so-called blessing easy for those of us left here? By no means! My point is that blessings may just be a gift from God, given for our good, but they may be wrapped in something other than a bow. Blessings may not always fit our definition of perfect, or come as we expect them too.
On a much smaller scale, seeing the blessing was a struggle for me through this whole moving process. I know, especially now looking back, that God had this blessing of our new house waiting for us, but it didn't mean the process of getting here was easy. We were living in what, at times, felt like a storage unit, we didn't know when we would find a new house, there were some life challenges thrown in the mix, & on top of all that I was trying to handle pregnancy!
It's funny how God has a way of speaking to you in just the way you need at the time if you're willing to listen. Throught this time, my small group was discussing 2 topics from the book of Psalms: God is our Refuge & God is Responsive.
"Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty." ~Psalm 91:1
"The Lord says, 'I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue & honor them. I will reward them with a long life & give them my salvation.'" ~Psalm 91: 14-16
"The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time." Psalm 34:19
"How kind the Lord is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! The Lord protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, & he saved me. Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me." ~Psalm 116:5-7
Now, after waiting for a time, we have received an easy blessing: our new home! And it really is perfect for us. We hope you all have a chance to see it soon, but here are some highlights: fireplace, covered deck, sprinkler system, garden area, master suite with WALK IN CLOSET LADIES!!, attached 2 car garage, quiet neighborhood, room in the basement for Mike's workout equipment so it's not in the middle of the living room (thank God!), & so much more! (Before & After pictures coming soon!) We got a great price & closing went smoothly, & now it's our home! I know on the grand scale of things, this "challenging" time is nothing compared to what others have had to face, but nevertheless, it was our little challenge. But oh Lord what a blessing worth waiting for!
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| Front View |
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| Backyard |
P.S. Nemo is happy to be in his new home at 6 months!! =)
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