It has been a busy month for us here at the Elliott house. A whirlwind of events, really. Since the last time I blogged, Jon and I decided to put our home up for sale. It's something we were planning on doing sometime this spring anyhow, but we thought that we would have some sort of clue as to where we would be moving. We've been looking for a new home on and off for three years now. Due to other events in our life and not finding what we were looking for, it was really becoming a frustrating search. So, here at the last minute, we decided we would take advantage of the tax incentive going on and put our house up for sale in hopes that some young couple would be looking for their first home. April 13th our home went on the market. I was still painting that afternoon when our realtor called and said that we had our first showing the next night. Someone actually called and wanted a showing two hours after our house was listed on MLS. We received an offer from that couple later in the week and sadly, things didn't go through. Jon and I were really upset, thinking we had blown this opportunity of an offer. We just kept beating ourselves up over it.
Meanwhile, we found a home we loved, made an offer and it was denied. Not counter-offered, just denied, period. Jon said he had prayed before he called to make the offer that God would close the door if this wasn't meant to be. Well, God closed it. So, in our minds...it was over. We prayed and God delivered.
The very next day, I was telling my friend the story when Jon walks in the room. He has his phone where I can hear the owner of "the house" telling Jon he would like to make us a counter-offer! We were shocked! It was great news.
However, now the pressure was on. Jon has been working a lot of hours recently. This is not his normal schedule but he's a salesman and currently has a big job going on downtown for the brand new Devon building. It's going to be the largest building to ever be built in Oklahoma. It's been a huge blessing to us, but also has been a test of patience for me. I'm not used to my husband having this schedule. Meanwhile, I am with the kids all day, and trying to paint and keep the house spotless for showings. Tension is running high.
I began praying for a buyer. Prayer is and has always been a struggle for me. I tend to dwell and worry and think, rather than talk to God about how I'm feeling. I clean house for a precious little lady named Peggy. On Peggy's wall is a wall hanging that says, "The difference between prayer and worry is to whom you direct your thoughts."
I've dusted this wall hanging every other week for two years. I think about the meaning of it, a lot, and so I thought I would put this saying into practice. I've been praying for a buyer every time the thought comes into my mind....literally about five times a day. I got tired of praying the same thing every time, so I prayed that God would cut greediness out of me, that I would be willing to take a lower offer for the sake of selling. I prayed for the buyers that God would be preparing their hearts. I prayed that I would have my ears open to hear God's voice and nudging in anything I needed to be aware of. I prayed like I've never prayed before. I began to have a peace that I've never had before. I began to feel that God didn't lead me to this place for it to fall threw. I knew then, that he was in control, he would take care of us, and he would bring a buyer into our lives.
Eleven days after our house went onto the market, we found a buyer. A young couple, pregnant with their first child, gave us a great offer. I found later that they made an offer on a house a few days before, only to be denied, and I started to think about how God had probably answered their prayers too. I'm sure they were upset when their offer on the previous house wasn't accepted. Time was running out for them on making the tax credit and with her expecting, I'm sure she's feeling the need to find a home.
I know I shouldn't be surprised when God blesses me...when He answers my prayers...when he gives me my hearts' desires. But...I am. Why does the creator of the universe care about what's going on in my little world? It's baffling to me sometimes.
I'm grateful for this time in our lives, even if it is a little stressful. I'm excited to bring my kids to their new home and watch them play in the backyard. I'm excited to see Jack run up and down the stairs-this was his one and only requirement on a house! I'm so thankful to God and feel so humbled by his love and blessing. It reminds me of the verse that Jon and I put on our wedding program:
"Now unto Him who is able to do abundantly more than we could ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us." Ephesians 3:20
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