Are we supposed to know what God is doing in our lives?
Another house. Maybe a month with no where to live.
Found out today that California Son can't come pick up his furniture and help pack a POD. We'll have to ask other help and store his furniture until he comes.
Why?
I don't have a clue!
I wonder if we'll ever know.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Outline for a Funeral - Death and Tragedy - - On Becoming Truer
I read this tonight and feel someone may need to read it. If you or someone you know is grieving, I pray this will be a comfort.
Outline for a Funeral - Death and Tragedy - - On Becoming Truer
Outline for a Funeral - Death and Tragedy - - On Becoming Truer
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
If God Be For Us. . .
Surprised that one man can be so proud, but at peace because we know God's presence, we are back on the road to signing away our home.
The appraiser refused to re-evaluate his appraisal of our home although he made many errors. We had to decide if we wanted to make a fight of it and hire another appraiser, ask for an extension on signing the contract and maybe lose the deal or trust God once again.
If God didn't know the outcome of this appraisal, then we're done for. Either He knew or He didn't. We choose to trust Him and let the house go for the $35,000 less than what the people were willing to pay. If it's only about money, then we have nothing to worry about. God's certainly bigger than finances. George Mueller lived for years by trusting God. He fed thousands of orphans on faith and God never let him down.
He'll work out the place we are to go, too.
The appraiser refused to re-evaluate his appraisal of our home although he made many errors. We had to decide if we wanted to make a fight of it and hire another appraiser, ask for an extension on signing the contract and maybe lose the deal or trust God once again.
If God didn't know the outcome of this appraisal, then we're done for. Either He knew or He didn't. We choose to trust Him and let the house go for the $35,000 less than what the people were willing to pay. If it's only about money, then we have nothing to worry about. God's certainly bigger than finances. George Mueller lived for years by trusting God. He fed thousands of orphans on faith and God never let him down.
He'll work out the place we are to go, too.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Learning to Live
I don't think I've ever been in a place like this before. My memories of moving from one place to another are: decide to move, sell (if not renting), move. Nothing like what we're going through now.
Husband is slowly packing up the house. Still have the kitchen and our bedroom, the garage and laundry room to pack. I help some but mostly feel totally useless. He's a much better packer than I am and wants to do it himself. With my bum knee it's not a good idea for me to climb ladders or carry boxes (even if I could lift them!)
Our house will be sold one way or another. That part is for sure. The other house is asking for an extension for their bankruptcy court date before they close--IF the judge releases the house. Since we aren't buying it and our son is, it's up to him. If they aren't able buy the house, that puts us in the situation of having no place to live.
BUT! God is certainly bigger than all this and we still trust Him.
It is just so strange to be living in limbo. I wonder how many people have lived that way and live that way every day? To me limbo means living in minimal basic order. The way I see it, there should be an order to life. Not for us. We can't make plans beyond today.
Wait! Isn't that what we're supposed to do? Live every day as though it is the last? This is the day the Lord has made, rejoice and be glad in it? Does that mean we just live day by day without making plans?
I've always been a long-range planner. Can't do that now. Long-range to us is knowing we will get up tomorrow and prepare to move somewhere, some day---probably, but things could change at any time. Is that enough? Feels wrong to me even though I can't do anything else at this time except keep writing my little stories for the grands for Christmas. (Most likely Christmas will come and chances are we'll still be alive by then, and living somewhere.)
One really good thing about where we are now is that we don't have to worry about housecleaning. We're letting the dust settle on the furniture, allowing the floors to remain unvacuumed and mopped, (but we do make the bed every day.) No one's coming to visit and if they do, they'll understand the mess. What I'm missing is order. I do like order and I'm way out of my comfort zone.
When all is said and done, we'll look back on this and see what was really happening. If God isn't working all this out for our good, then what is going on? Like Paul, I think we're learning to be content in whatever state we are in. Even in chaos!
Husband is slowly packing up the house. Still have the kitchen and our bedroom, the garage and laundry room to pack. I help some but mostly feel totally useless. He's a much better packer than I am and wants to do it himself. With my bum knee it's not a good idea for me to climb ladders or carry boxes (even if I could lift them!)
Our house will be sold one way or another. That part is for sure. The other house is asking for an extension for their bankruptcy court date before they close--IF the judge releases the house. Since we aren't buying it and our son is, it's up to him. If they aren't able buy the house, that puts us in the situation of having no place to live.
BUT! God is certainly bigger than all this and we still trust Him.
It is just so strange to be living in limbo. I wonder how many people have lived that way and live that way every day? To me limbo means living in minimal basic order. The way I see it, there should be an order to life. Not for us. We can't make plans beyond today.
Wait! Isn't that what we're supposed to do? Live every day as though it is the last? This is the day the Lord has made, rejoice and be glad in it? Does that mean we just live day by day without making plans?
I've always been a long-range planner. Can't do that now. Long-range to us is knowing we will get up tomorrow and prepare to move somewhere, some day---probably, but things could change at any time. Is that enough? Feels wrong to me even though I can't do anything else at this time except keep writing my little stories for the grands for Christmas. (Most likely Christmas will come and chances are we'll still be alive by then, and living somewhere.)
One really good thing about where we are now is that we don't have to worry about housecleaning. We're letting the dust settle on the furniture, allowing the floors to remain unvacuumed and mopped, (but we do make the bed every day.) No one's coming to visit and if they do, they'll understand the mess. What I'm missing is order. I do like order and I'm way out of my comfort zone.
When all is said and done, we'll look back on this and see what was really happening. If God isn't working all this out for our good, then what is going on? Like Paul, I think we're learning to be content in whatever state we are in. Even in chaos!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Down the Toilet, Not the Rabbit Hole
Sometimes when life seems to be going down the toilet all you can do is laugh.
We have our house sold. We have a house we are moving into in about two weeks. Right?
Wrong!
We found out this morning that the appraisal of our house came in low--very low. The appraiser made several glaring errors. Even the buyer's agent agrees. Our agent is writing a letter to the mortgage company stating the errors and asking for a reevaluation of the appraisal. Husband is at his office signing the letter.
A few mintues after he left for the agent's office, we got a call about the house we are (were?) to move into. The title company discovered that the owners of that house filed bankruptcy a few months ago and their house doesn't belong to them. It belongs to the bank.
What do you do when sh#t happens? Laugh. Could it be more crazy?
Thank God He has spent the past few months (and most of my life) teaching me to trust in Him.
We have our house sold. We have a house we are moving into in about two weeks. Right?
Wrong!
We found out this morning that the appraisal of our house came in low--very low. The appraiser made several glaring errors. Even the buyer's agent agrees. Our agent is writing a letter to the mortgage company stating the errors and asking for a reevaluation of the appraisal. Husband is at his office signing the letter.
A few mintues after he left for the agent's office, we got a call about the house we are (were?) to move into. The title company discovered that the owners of that house filed bankruptcy a few months ago and their house doesn't belong to them. It belongs to the bank.
What do you do when sh#t happens? Laugh. Could it be more crazy?
Thank God He has spent the past few months (and most of my life) teaching me to trust in Him.
Friday, March 5, 2010
The Basics of Life
With all that's going on in my life right now, it's amazing that I am functioning at all. Not only are we having to downsize from over 3000 feet of living space to 1900, we are leaving a house we both love.
I spoke to two of my closest family members yesterday and came away from the conversations hurting for them. Another family member's actions have caused so much pain to those who love her, and there's nothing we can do. Except pray. And even that doesn't seem to be enough.
This morning I woke up with a heaviness. So much to do and so little energy. So many loved ones hurting.
My car has always been my prayer closet. Today I finally had time to go to the chiropractor and as I drove, I tried to get my thoughts together and have a talk with God. The words didn't come. I got behind a very slow moving vehicle and followed it for several blocks before I saw the bumper sticker that read "Jesus Christos."
I thought very little of it until I came out of the doctor's office and started home. My heart was still heavy so I turned to the Christian channel on Sirius radio. A song began, very slowly, slower than I'd ever heard it and when the chorus began, I sang along."Oh, How I Love Jesus."
My heart lifted. I sang all the way down the street to the next stop light and when I stopped, I looked at the truck sitting next to me and just a little ahead so that I could clearly see a sticker on the back of the cab. It read "Not I, But Christ." And I knew the answer.
Without asking, God saw my heart and answered my unspoken prayer. None of this is about me or my problems. It's all about Him. I rejoiced and turned the radio back on, this time pushing the button that played a CD. The first song on the tape was another word from Him.
"We need to get back to the basics of life.
A heart that is pure
And a love that is blind.
A faith that is earnestly grounded in Christ.
The hope that endures for all time.
We need to get back to the basics of life."
This move has been all about purpose, and that purpose is for us to keep our eyes on Jesus. He is the Way and has our Way. My family is in His hands. All I have to do is slow down, love Him and get back to the basics of life.
I spoke to two of my closest family members yesterday and came away from the conversations hurting for them. Another family member's actions have caused so much pain to those who love her, and there's nothing we can do. Except pray. And even that doesn't seem to be enough.
This morning I woke up with a heaviness. So much to do and so little energy. So many loved ones hurting.
My car has always been my prayer closet. Today I finally had time to go to the chiropractor and as I drove, I tried to get my thoughts together and have a talk with God. The words didn't come. I got behind a very slow moving vehicle and followed it for several blocks before I saw the bumper sticker that read "Jesus Christos."
I thought very little of it until I came out of the doctor's office and started home. My heart was still heavy so I turned to the Christian channel on Sirius radio. A song began, very slowly, slower than I'd ever heard it and when the chorus began, I sang along."Oh, How I Love Jesus."
My heart lifted. I sang all the way down the street to the next stop light and when I stopped, I looked at the truck sitting next to me and just a little ahead so that I could clearly see a sticker on the back of the cab. It read "Not I, But Christ." And I knew the answer.
Without asking, God saw my heart and answered my unspoken prayer. None of this is about me or my problems. It's all about Him. I rejoiced and turned the radio back on, this time pushing the button that played a CD. The first song on the tape was another word from Him.
"We need to get back to the basics of life.
A heart that is pure
And a love that is blind.
A faith that is earnestly grounded in Christ.
The hope that endures for all time.
We need to get back to the basics of life."
This move has been all about purpose, and that purpose is for us to keep our eyes on Jesus. He is the Way and has our Way. My family is in His hands. All I have to do is slow down, love Him and get back to the basics of life.
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