and give an estimate for what we
would make as a down payment on
our new house. We really had only
a guess on proceeds from our sale
at the time, since our pending sale
lasted for so long and we kept pay-
ing our mortgage in the meantime.
We closed on our new home on
October 28 and the difference in
our proceeds and down payment?
You guessed it - the same size as
our recent Grace Beyond gift!
But, what about that casting of lots
on the “upgrade across the street”
you might ask?
Believe it or not, that house, which
accepted an offer in June, ended
up closing its sale on that same
day we bought the “upgrade of
the upgrade” house and Andrea,
who needed reassurance, received
the email alert of that sale on the
morning of driving to our pur-
chase! God truly did more than we
could have asked or imagined and
had far better in store for us after
this journey of faith and stepping
out in trust.
So, we moved into our new house
on November 5, 2016; just a few
short weeks ahead of Calvary mov-
ing back into the Sanctuary. It all
makes sense to us now, but in the
midst of three years of prayer, nu-
merous failed deals, identity theft,
and a tough lesson in how faith
works with casting lots, that was dif-
ficult to wait for. Yet the Lord gave
us a house that is more than we
could have asked or imagined and
we ended up doubling our initial
Grace Beyond pledge and then the
Lord blessed us right back.
We prayed that God would show
us what our family should look
like. We thought that was answered
in having Josiah, our fifth child.
When we told this story to Pas-
tor Jim, his answer was that God
wanted our family to look like a
family of faith. We are so blessed
and honored that the Lord would
see fit to use us in His story. We
look forward to giving more and
trusting more in the year and years
to come.
How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul
longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh
sing for joy to the living God.
Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for
herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of
hosts, my King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your
house, ever singing your praise!
Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are
the highways to Zion. As they go through the Valley of Baca they
make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools.
They go from strength to strength; each one appears before God
in Zion.
... For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than
dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and
shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does
he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts,
blessed is the one who trusts in you!
Psalm 84
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