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In these tough economic times, it is so easy to see the situation at hand and miss the blessings. Like the old saying, you can't see the forest through the trees.
When my husband got out of active duty military and "put all our eggs into one basket," we really had to step out on faith that God had something better for us in mind. Bryan applied for a civil service position at Lackland Air Force Base, which meant we'd be moving to San Antonio. We hadn't had to worry about finding a home in four years because, as active duty, we were allowed to live on base. Now, we had to find a home and we had very little time to do it.
That first weekend, we went house hunting and were devastated to find out that we had borderline credit and might not even qualify for a loan. Bryan had to be at work and we could no longer stay in base housing. All of a sudden, we were homeless. Bryan's mother had two spare rooms and, although she was five hours away from where he was working, she agreed to allow the kids and me to stay. The situation was tense and her husband at the time was abusive with the children and with me. As a result, things came to a head when I refused to allow him to spank our two-year-old for crying. Bryan came to get us that weekend and took us to my mom's house. My mom had no room, but the kids and I stayed on her living room couch and floor while our struggle to qualify continued.
On Father's Day, we had a wreck, which was bad enough, but an unexpected ripple effect had us worried. We had planned to use the insurance money to purchase another van, since the one we'd been driving was our only working vehicle. Apparently, making a large purchase like that, even though we intended to pay in full, would cause our credit score to drop even more and render us unable to qualify! Bryan spent a month searching for a clunker to get around in.
In August, we finally got the news - we got a loan! It wasn't for as much as we'd hoped, but it was a loan nonetheless and we praised God. The catch? We had about a week to find our home before the mortgage company's good graces ran out. I can't even recall how many homes we looked at, but I remember the one. Our agent didn't really want to look at it because it was a little above our price range but, for whatever reason, she felt led to put it on the list.
Pulling into the cul-de-sac, I fell in love with the neighborhood. The house was perfect, but we needed to look inside to be sure. One problem - the door was locked! Try as we might, there was no getting in. As we stood there listening to the other agent talk about the other family that had seen the home and had been interested, I started to pray.
"God, if this is the house for us, give us a sign."
It seemed as though it was at that very moment that the doorknob fell off in Bryan's hand! We all looked at each other in confusion. How did that happen? No one else was going to look at the house until that got fixed and we had a choice to make. Would we bid on something we hadn't even seen?
We did. To make a long story shorter, the VA appraised it lower than we'd expected, so we got the home within our budget and with further repairs we didn't have to pay for. When we did get to see inside, it was perfect. It was God's provision. As I walked through the kitchen, I distinctly remember that I could hear that still small voice reminding me that if He clothed and fed the birds of the field, why would I worry?
Looking back, I can see His hand in everything that happened. We live in a wonderful neighborhood and got a great deal on a beautiful house. There is enough space for everyone and it's a nice, quiet place. If we had not struggled for so long, the house would not have been available when we were ready to buy. The van that we'd had before was starting to show signs of trouble. If it hadn't been for the wreck, we wouldn't have been able to get a different one. We learned to appreciate each other more as we endured the seven months we had to live apart. The four months that the kids and I spent with my mom is a time I will always cherish.
With what our country is going through right now, it might be a good time to think back on how God is always there, always able to meet (and exceed) our needs and how He has a perfect plan for us all. If I step onto a busy street because I don't believe there are cars on it, it won't stop me from getting hit. Just because one might not believe in God, doesn't mean He isn't there.
Jennifer Hamilton
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