I don’t know where to begin, because I don’t think I possess the capacity to speak on this topic, neither to give justice to the Amazing power of the God I serve. Not only am I incapable, but also undeserving. And when you understand who God is for yourself, you will get where I am coming from.
It is good that God chose us first, and we did not get a say in the matter (when we think about how we live each day). We must marvel at His unending capacity to see us and not our flaws.
I am in constant introspection, and at times specific memories will surface that remind me of the Power of God at work in my life. One such time is when my husband and I were able to purchase our home. God took complete control and did things in a way that we never imagined. We were considering purchasing land and then building because it made better sense financially, or so we thought. We located a fabulous piece of property that was quite secluded and would have been one of about 10 pieces of lots in a private area. It was like a fairytale, and it’s not my intention for this part of the post to come across that way. It was picturesque, to say the least, elevated, and gave a beautiful view that seemed magical.
We began our planning which included us commissioning an architect to create plans for our beautiful two-story home. You couldn’t talk to us and say anything different; we had it all planned out. The drawings were finally complete, and it was a beauty. In our excitement, we did not realize we were encountering obstacles with processing and completing the sale of the land.
Fast forward, I do not remember when we realized that something was amiss. We visited our lawyer and decided to ask for a return of our deposit, which we did, and got. It was a blow for us because we were decidedly proactive about what we were doing. We had commissioned an architect, gone ahead, and gotten our drawings approved to begin construction. This was without extra money outside of what we would have received from the National Housing Trust (the government body that helped new homeowners to access mortgages for buying or constructing). At this point, we were moving in faith that the money would come.
So having done all of this, the mood was one of huge disappointment, but we brushed it off and believed God through the process.
Not long after, we saw a housing development being constructed that looked promising and in the same breath out of our league. In any event, we decided to view the model home and the plans for the community. We were impressed, to say the least. These homes were not like others we saw going up, which did not suit us; either too small or visually unappealing. These homes were different, the look of the physical structure, the square footage, the finishes were all impressive, but the price…OMGoodness. At first, hearing the cost was a bit overwhelming. And to put it in context, if we wanted one, we would have to make an earnest deposit which was pretty much what we had gotten back from the land deposit. Additionally, the full deposit was working out to be over 500% of the earnest deposit.
Can I be honest and say, at this point, I was like Sarah who laughed. But as I realized later, this was God’s promise to us, and soon enough, we would experience His Amazing Power. God increased my husband’s clientele’ (seemingly instantaneous). He allowed him an increase in his income so we could pay the rest of the deposit required. We moved into our new home, fully furnished with all new furniture and not the basics. I am talking add ons that we could have bought over time (but God said now!)… paintings, mirrors, lamps, cushions, drapes, rods, etc. We had a beautiful home and one that we are extraordinarily pleased about, even today. I get chills every time I think about how God worked it all out for us. In retrospect, I also thought about the pains of construction he saved us from.
There are so many other accounts I could give of the Awesome power of God at work in our lives. For instance, we went to Valentines’ dinner at our church, and while waiting for the hall to be ready, we voiced that we should be at a 5-star restaurant having dinner instead. Before the evening ended, we won 2 tickets to dinner at a “posh” restaurant at the location we had voiced and hoped for.
I am sure as you read this you are reminded of the Power of God at work in your life too, and that was my aim. Never allow “life” to cause you to forget how amazing God has been to you and how He has worked in your life. All of us have our stories to tell—use them to encourage someone who may have forgotten.
Here are a few reminders for you to take into next week and beyond.
- Understand, good things take time – it took us 14 years after marriage with almost a permanent separation in between to buy our home.
- It may not happen as you expect it to – not because you are moving in faith, it will go the way you have it in mind. Move in faith, but be open and be thankful & grateful when things do not work as you expect.
- Not all good things are God’s things – It may be a good thing in your eyes, but it is not the best thing that God has planned for you.
- God will give you more than you bargained or could imagine for yourself – He likes to give us “brawta” (more) infinite bounty. He will overwhelm us!
- Trust; while believing in the Power of God. – … “trust in the LORD with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths“. Proverbs 3:5-6