"Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible'" Matthew 19:26
We were so proud the day we were able to begin the building process of our first house. If you didn't know already Dana and I had meager beginnings when we first started out as man and wife (see post; Well-Placed Landmarks), we definitely put the cart before the horse and life was lived on a tight budget. We set goals for ourselves, one being the American dream.
Thankfully Dana was great with making a budget and sticking to it (a learning curve for me, for sure). Whenever there was money at the end of the month we would sock it into our "house savings fund" and I would dream and wish and fantasize about our new home, having faith that one day we would see this long awaited dream come true.
We set our sights on building a home and actively began the steps of making it happen. We spotted the perfect piece of land and a contractor who saw our dream. Everything was falling into it's perfect place...until it didn't.
You see, the company Dana worked for was a booming industry at this time. Along with our savings we had invested in the stock program to supplement a good down payment and furnish every room in our new home. We were so amazed at how the process was moving along so smoothly (I felt I was floating on cloud nine most of the time). I had to pinch myself to know that it wasn't all a dream until that day I woke up. (We call it "Black Wednesday", the day before Thanksgiving).
Exactly one month until our closing date the company's executive officers were charged with fraudulent activity in the financials which meant the stock plummeted and took our hopes and dreams with it.
The company was able to go on with business so Dana kept his job (praise God!). And after our shock subsided we had to make a fast, new plan of scraping together the rest of what we needed just to cover our closing costs. Thankfully Dana had taken off in the world of basketball officiating and he requested his booking agent to give him all the games possible. Those were some long days and long nights but if you asked either of us we wouldn't have traded it for anything.
In the end we were able to close on the date that was set with exactly what we needed to make our home ours. I will never forget those days of hard work and depending on the Lord to see us through. The boys and I didn't see much of Dana during that month. He worked all day and went straight to a school gymnasium somewhere in Marshall County almost every night, all day on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. We celebrated every time we put money in that little blue bank pouch knowing that it was carrying us closer to the reality of finalizing what we felt was already ours.
We still say to this day we don't know how we would have done it without the Lord's help. We didn't get all that we had planned for but what we got was so sweet because of the fight we faced to accomplish what was thrown at us. What looked impossible to us in one day's time was nothing in God's eyes. He knew we had it in us to pull together, work as a team and allow Him to make it possible.
The day we moved in our new home we had tears of happiness, accomplishment and pride. It was a journey that will forever be embedded in my memory that we serve a God that cares for us. He has a proven track record of giving His people victory in the end, I thank Him over and over again for showing us just how powerful He is when we cling to Him.
"Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore, I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing."" (Luke 12:22,23)
I love you & He loves you more!
Lord, You are the God of miracles. There is nothing You cannot do. Thank You for bringing us through what we feel is impossible and giving us victory. May we always cling to You. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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