For Those Who Are Wondering...

Well - Suzi anyway because she asked.

Mr. Right and I are selling our home because we feel compelled by God to do so.

No, he hasn't talked to us from a burning bush in the front yard... or back.

Nor has he sent an angel in bright shining light to tell us to get out of the house.

Nor has he left any notes lying around the house telling us to sell.

However he has put an idea in our hearts that we haven't been able to shake. It all started last fall when we took the Financial Peace University course at our church...

We took the class with the intention of getting control of our finances rather than living as if money was limitless. We didn't fight about money, but we both knew that with the two of us working, we shouldn't be as strapped as we were every. single. month.

(I know it's the norm, but we would prefer to not have to live paycheck to paycheck for the rest of our lives. We want to pay off our student loans, to have money to sock away for retirement, to be able to give freely and to be able to have some fun without wondering how we are going to pay for it all.)

Anyway, the class taught us to see where we were really spending the money that God gave to us, to look for areas that were frivolous spending and to find ways to pay off debt more quickly - be it an extra job for a while, saying no to extras and putting that money on a bill and/or selling things you don't really need. Here's where we're at on this list:

• I really don't want Mr. Right or me to have a 2nd job because we don't get enough time with the kids as it is.
• Even after we cut out all the extras, we weren't making the budget.
• So that left selling some things, but if you looked at most of our stuff, you'd know we'd only get about 75 cents for anything that we'd try to sell at a yard sale...

So we prayed about what to do and God put it on our hearts to sell the house. Well, really Mr. Right's heart.

Me? I fought the thought every step of the way and cried like a baby when I realized that it really is the best thing for us to do. We've moved so much in the last six years, and it felt so peaceful finally to have a place to put down roots. I cried because I didn't want my kids to have to make new friends again. I sobbed because I had a home I loved. I cried because... well, I cried because I'm selfish and I didn't have enough faith to trust in God's plan.

But Mr. Right stopped me with one sentence: If God can give us one place to love, he can do it again. Oh yeah... God doesn't have limits like me.

Once I realized what a jerk I was being to God, I quit crying about a bunch of wood, brick and plaster. I quit focusing on worldly things that don't define me, and I started focusing on what God wants. I've prayed that God will give me wisdom, faith, perseverance and flexibility. I've prayed more about the people we'll be living by than the place we will be living in. In other words, I've given it over to God and I'm just following his lead. And leading he is...

• He's blessed us with a fantastic Christian realtor who understands what we're trying to do and has offered to us a less-than-normal commission rate.
• He has blessed both Mr. Right and me with employment in companies in the real estate/mortgage areas that have free/discounted benefits that will aid us in buying and selling our house.
• He's blessed us with friends who have the knowledge we need to make our place nicer for the next owner. (Thanks John, Brock, Mike and Ben!)
• He's blessed us with incredible sales for most of the things we had purchase to update it.
• He's blessed us with parents who are able and willing to watch our kids over spring break while we work on the house.
• He's blessed us with a nice tax return so that none of these renovations need to be on a credit card.
• He's blessed me with a man who is focused, detail-oriented, calm and has a great attitude that is infectious to me.
• He's given me a content heart about the move, the process and with whom I get to move.

God's hand has been guiding us all the way. And he has made this entire process so easy for us - even Mr. Right's fall through the ceiling had a God twist on it.

We have decided not to purchase another house until our place is sold. We would like to avoid being saddled with two mortgages mainly because there's no way we could afford it. I know that God has our new house out there. He'll show it to us in his time.

So if you would offer up a prayer on our behalf - for the quick, adequate sale of our present house and for the purchase of a new house, then we would be most appreciative. Oh, and please add the request that our family would be a blessing to those in our new neighborhood and that both our kids could make great friends. I'm sure it's part of God's plan already, but I'd love to have it lifted up to him anyway.