God sold our house.

I’m actually writing this on June 25^th, but today, July 12^th, we closed on our house. I have a feeling when the actual house closing date comes, I won’t have a lot of time to write this incredible story and it’s worth sharing. And if I have ever had a story to tell about God’s faithfulness, it’s this one:

[back story]

Last December (2012), I sat in WMU’s annual Week of Prayer for International Missions. I heard missionary after missionary speak about his and her time overseas and spreading the gospel to the unreached. I prayed for these missionaries. I sang the songs. And tears welled up in my eyes as I told God, “Wherever you want us, that’s where I want to be. Here…there…I’m Yours.” And I believe it took years for God to bring me to this place of surrender where I was not defined by a dream or even a calling, but I had come to a point of being His. 

And then it happened. God spoke to my heart and whispered ever so clearly, “Now is the time. Put your house up for sale.”

So what did I do with this ever-so-clear message? Text Jeremy and let him know? Ask my accountability partners to pray with me about this? Tell any human being at all? Nope.

I didn’t do a thing.

I kept it to myself. Why?

Because God’s plans can be scary at times. And we had been in our house for almost 5 years. We had been wanting and praying for God to sell it for the past 3 years. And had different real estate agents tell us that it would. not. sale. End of discussion. They would not even list it.

I wanted to be sure about God telling me we needed to put our house up for sale so I did what any good wife would do and said, “If you really want us to put the house up for sale, make it abundantly clear to BOTH Jeremy and me.”  (I know God laughs at me sometimes.)

And time passed.

We were on our way back from Disney World at the end of February. And we drove because we like road trips and spending uninterrupted time with each other in the car. As we were talking, we discussed our future, and God, and what He was saying to both of us; and then it happened. I finally said, “I know this sounds crazy, but I feel that God wants us to put our house up for sale.” And Jeremy laughed.

Then he said, “I’ve thought that exact same thing. How long have you felt this way?”

And I admitted since December. And he said that in December the Lord also began to prompt him to put it up for sale.

[loss of hope]

If you have ever sold a house before, you know that having the right agent can be a make-it or break-it deal.

At first, we talked with an agent who had sold a couple of houses in our neighborhood. She came to our house, sat down with us, discussed prices, and basically told us what all the other agents had told us: the price you want for the house is too high. No one will walk in your front door to look at the house. Even if someone walks in, they will never offer above X amount of money. Even if they do offer this price, there’s no way it will ever appraise above X amount of money.

Jeremy felt very strongly that the Lord had given him a listing price. He felt that as strongly as he felt that we should be listing it at all. So in a final attempt to sell the house, he asked her, “So if I want you to be our agent and I ask you to list the house at this price, you won’t do it?”

“No. There’s no point.”

[hope restored]

She left. We laughed. Ok, maybe I cried too. And we prayed.

Then, we knew of a man from our church who is a real estate agent. And, just to see if what she was saying was actually true, we called him.

He listened and decided to come to our house.

He looked at the house, sat down with us, went through similar numbers we had heard before, and asked what we wanted to list it for.

And Jeremy and I looked at each other and laughed and told him.

And bless his heart because I know he must have thought we were crazy when I followed that up with, “And I know this sounds funny, but we really believe God said to put the house up for sale. And Jeremy feels strongly that we should start at this price.”

Our agent was honest with us about his concerns, but being the man of faith he is, prayed with us over the house and went outside and put his sign in the yard.

[the not-so-long wait]

About two weeks went by and then someone came to look at the house.

And more people came by and looked at it.

Then a little less than a month went by and my grandfather passed away.

Jeremy was preaching at my grandfather’s funeral that weekend and, while we were standing at the visitation, our agent called Jeremy and told him that the very first people who came to see our house wanted to make an offer on it.

[praise Him]

It’s been a process. If you want to know my honest feelings about this season of us being in the house, you can go back and read this and this and this.

The house did sell for less than the price we asked. But it wasn’t too much less. And it did appraise for less than what we wanted, but again, not too much less. The only way we made up the difference is that the buyer took on some of the cost (again, something that should NEVER happen in this market).

Over the past five years, there have been times of doubt along the way. There have been times of crying. There have been times of anger and confusion and questioning. But oh did our faith in Him grow. And our belief in HIS timing. And our trust in Him.

He is good and He alone is faithful. Late in 2010, I felt the Lord say to me: “My Name is Adonai-jireh and you will get to know this Name well.”

Adonai-jireh means, “the LORD will provide.”

The next week I got a call from WMU offering me a job, a year later Jeremy was offered a job at Riverchase, six months after that the Lord sold our house.

He provides.

[3704]

Jeremy and I secured a townhouse apartment that we will rent for the next year. I’m usually not a numbers person but the day we secured the townhouse, I was driving back to our house thanking God for providing the agent, the buyers, and the townhouse (which happens to be townhouse #3704). And I felt Him say, “Look up what Psalm 37:04 means.” (Anna Floyd, I can see you smiling as you read this.)

So I got out my phone and looked it up and read and laughed and cried:

“Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:04).

The thing is: the townhouse is a testimony to the desires of our heart but it is no longer our hearts’ desire. Our hearts’ desire has honestly become to delight ourselves in HIM and He has become the desire of our heart. And this process is a testimony to His faithfulness to us—to pursue us and love us enough to make us completely His no matter what the cost—no matter how long it takes.

[thank you]

Thank you to so many who have walked this journey with us. From the times we complained and cried about being stuck in the house to those who prayed with us for it to sell to our agent who had faith in God’s leading us to those who helped us clean the house when we had the appraisal (Karen Hays) to those who helped us move into our new home (J.T. and Jett Turner, Mitchells, Caldwells, Zack Nichols, Andy Smith, Kyle) to my parents who came down and helped paint our townhouse to those who have just been there and encouraged us and prayed with us and stood by us to make sure we found ourselves in God and not in a location.

Thank you. We love you all and look forward to living closer to our church family as we minister to those around us and pray about where the Lord will lead us next.

To God alone be the glory now and forevermore.

God sold our house.