It's amazing how God works sometimes. I wouldn't be telling the whole truth if I didn't say that for some time now I've been experiencing somewhat of a dry-spell spiritually...longing for more ...longing for a deeper relationship. I've had a really difficult time with prayer...having intimate times...and dry, empty times ever since Brandy's death. Of course when Ryan was born and with all the troubles and complications related to his birth I cried out to God in earnest, heart-felt prayers like I hadn't done in years. After his complete healing I gave all glory to God, and I continue to do so today. However, my prayer life has been lacking...seriously lacking. I long for more though.
On Monday morning of this week during my quiet time I expressed, in heartfelt desperation, my longing for more and the regret of having such difficulty with prayer. In somewhat of a selfish moment I asked God to please show me His hand in my life and family in a new and definite way. As soon as I said it I felt horrible for what appeared to be a "lack of faith" especially when I started thinking about all God has done for me...I have a beautiful life...beautiful, healthy family...an amazing boy who, by the way, is also a miracle...a beautiful home that is completely paid for...no big worries...great friends...etc...etc...etc.
God heard my prayer and answered it in a way I never would have imagined...even in my moment of weakness. What I'm about to discuss makes me fall on my knees in praise. God is good. His blessings never cease to amaze me. I'm so undeserving, but He still continues to bless me. His love truly *is* amazing. If you have never experienced God's love you sure are missing out on something incredible. I just wish I was as faithful with Him as He is with me, but I'm still a work-in-progress and I'm so excited that my Creator is still working to make me more like Him...no matter how painful it might be.
Monday afternoon my brother called me (he rarely ever calls me). He said he knew of a house we should go look at. Wade and I were not considering moving. It hadn't even crossed our minds. We discussed the possibility of "some day" from time to time and I often kept tabs on the local real estate listings for my own curiouslty and just in case a "good deal" came along. Anyway...David called...I went out and looked at the house without any real expectations. It was mostly just curiosity because I love looking at houses. Well...I fell in love with it!
I took Wade out to look at it that evening. His interest in it was not as enthusiastic as mine, but after much debating, discussing, talking and discussing some more we decided it might really be a good thing. Here's the scoop: The house was for sale, went into foreclosure, was turned over to HUD. We found out about it on Monday. The HUD auction closed Thursday night, 11:59 p.m. If we were going to do anything, we had to do it fast. Sparing some tedious details it really amounts to I spent hours on the phone for 3 straight days. We found someone to show us the house, took a tour, called more people, decided it really was a good deal and we should at least try, called more people, called more people, called more people. Did I mention I called more people? We rounded up as much information as possible about every detail possible and collected all the necessary documents and placed our bid on Thursday evening around 4:00.
We got it!
The house is a 2 bedroom/2 bath brick home on .4 acres. There is a possibility of a 3rd bedroom conversion-project. The backyard is completely fenced in. The house needs a TON of work, but I LOVE remodeling projects and can do most of them myself. The neighborhood is quiet and more like country living as opposed to city-life. There is a small lake just a hop-skip-and-a-jump away where Ryan can feed geese and go fishing. (The lake is down the hill about a 150 yards). So here are the pictures...just remember: the house needs a ton of work, so these are the "before" pictures. I will definitely post the "after" pictures when we're done, but I wouldn't be surprised if those aren't available until closer to the holidays.
Front of house
Standing at the front door looking across the front patio in an eastward direction. The front patio needs a lot of TLC, but I envision something beautiful with this nice area.
Kitchen
Kitchen. If I'm able and finances allow I'd like to take that wall of cabinets out that is directly behind Wade and swing those around to the adjacent wall and build a small island in the place of the refrigerator opening. That would really open up the kitchen a lot.
Main Bathroom.
Spare bathroom. We may end up turning part of this bathroom into the utility room.
Back yard. It's big. Again, I envision something beautiful, but it really needs a lot of work. The entire yard needs to be dethatched, and for the most part it's just a big sticker patch. Give me a year or two and I'll have this yard looking like an oasis. :)
Back of the house.
Standing in the kitchen opening looking at the backdoor. Yes...that's a double-sided fireplace.
Standing in the same place looking at the front door (the wood door in the far corner).
Standing in the hall looking across the living room toward the fireplace. The kitchen/dining area is just on the other side of that. The dining table will probably go right under where that ugly chandelier is hanging from the ceiling.
Standing in the hall. Looking down the hall.
Closet in one of the bedrooms.
Master bedroom.
Utility room. This is the scariest room. We are hoping to turn it into a 3rd bedroom/office. It would be a tiny room, but definitely some potential for cuteness. It's the room that needs the most work.
3 comments:
Congrats on your new house! You're going to be a busy lady. It looks like there is a ton of potential in that house! Enjoy every second of your renovations.
Yeah!!! That's so great!! God does hear our prayers :) So happy for you and your family :)
THAT's so awesome!
I can totally see the place done up and lookin' cute!
Hurray for our loving God who shows Himself when we need it most!
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