When my kids were little I worked for a little while for a historic neighborhood association. One day I was driving around (long story, but I was doing my job) a block where a little house had been torn down. That was the first time I noticed "that" house. It had been empty for years, it was boarded up, siding was missing, as was part of the roof.
But it grabbed my attention. No, God grabbed my attention.
I went home and told my husband that we needed to buy a house. He was skeptical. Then I told him where is was and he went postal (that area was not a very nice place at that time). I told him that God told me that this was the house that we would spend the rest of our life together in.
I asked him to drive by it one time, pray and I would thankfully and cheerfully accept his decision. He got out of the car, walked around and came back.
We bought the house (or rather worked with the buyer to rehab and buy it on a land contract) without ever having been in it. We didn't even know how many rooms were in it! Not that it mattered, because we had to remove walls anyway...
God knew what He was doing when He led me to that house. Ten years later, the location (which had gotten better to the point where the area is now a status symbol and some of the houses have been featured in "Painted Ladies") was truly a Godsend. It was close enough to the cancer center that I could handle the kids, school and hospital.
I guess you could call it a prophecy. This truly was the house that we spent the rest of our life together in. My husband died in my arms in that house.
If you ask God for wisdom, and trust that He will give it to you (and then trust in what He says) He will give it.
Gina
That is an amazing story. It just reminds me of how things seem to work out in an odd way like that. Before my dad got sick, he had been planning to move to Florida. He had already sold all of his furniture and boxed up the rest. He gave notice to his landlord at the townhouse he had been living in. Then he found out he was ill. It was so strange how it all worked out. He thought he was doing all this to prepare to move to Florida. Though, that never happened, had he not already made all of these plans, we would have had to do all of these things in the midst of having to care for him. Fortunately, there wasn't much for us to do and he was able to move in with family immediately.
I think God truly does work in all things, even those that seem insignificant or unrelated at the time. I am sure you never dreamed that when you bought that house that living there would be convenient for you during a terminal illness years later. But, God knew. That really amazes me.
Ellen
God knows and He will provide guidance.
In the space of 18 months, my husband was diagnosed, spent a month in the hospital, my father-in-law dies, my mother-in-law died, my dad almost died and had 5-way bypass (1700 miles away from where I live) and then my husband died.
I was kind of shell-shocked...
😉
Anonymous
Yes He will, IF (and this is a BIG IF) you can truly get your own will, biases, desires, etc. out of the way. Only then can you truly hear from God.
THEN, what you hear must be able to be backed up with scripture and not just a verse here and there taken out of context but TRULY be found in the whole counsel of God.
Ellen
"anonymous",
I realize you're a full quiver type.
Do you know the kind of quiver that Solomon was talking about and how many arrows it would hold?
it would have been an archer's quiver and it would have held about 100 arrows (and that many child would have required about as many wives as Soloman had. Are you ready to step up to *that* plate?
Otherwise, anonymous posters will be deleted
Gina
Sometimes life can definitely leave us shell shocked. My mom's boyfriend died suddenly of a heart attack last July. Less than 2 months later is when we found out my dad was sick. He died in June of this year. The weekend after the funeral my sister was in her best friend's wedding. The best man rode with her to the reception and she said he asked her out. She said no because she has been dating someone for about 8 years. The week after the wedding, the guy died of a heart attack related to a previous drug problem. So, I know what you mean about everything coming at you at once.
The only thing that keeps me going is knowing that God is in control. I have asked him for wisdom many, many times in the last few months. I am so thankful that he is faithful to give us direction even in the darkest hours.
Gina
I just love it when people think that the anonymity of the internet gives them license to be rude. I wonder if "anonymous" would have the nerve to say these things to your face, Ellen?
jared
I wonder if Anonymous has ever read the verses about grace?
Ellen
ah...you all pretty much know that I have to get pretty frustrated before I start losing it...one thing that frustrates me quickly is a lack of courtesy...like not letting people know who they're "talking" to.
I grew up in a very legalistic church - you either "get" grace, or you don't.
😉
Ellen
Gina, I know - I made some pretty interesting choices when I was first single - some good, some not so good.
The biggest thing was that I needed to do something (anything) that "Art's wife" would not have done.
Ultimately, we do belong to a God who is in control - if I didn't believe that, I'd be a lot more stressed than I can be a lot of times.
😉
Marla
Ellen, I'm so glad you've been commenting on my blog because it really touched me to read this post. I don't know if you read my post about my stepdad dying, but whenever I encounter others who have been through grief--especially widows like my mom (I lived with her for two years afterwards)--it's special to me. She is now remarried and starting a whole new life in seminary in hopes of doing Christian counseling, especially in the area of grief since her experience was that the church wasn't equipped to deal with it.
You are an amazing woman of God--how long ago did all of this happen?
I also wanted to thank you for the Piper link on the QF post. I think it was very appropriate that it ended up being the final comment.
I love your reply to the very insensitive commenter. I'm curious about the QF-Bill Gothard connection, so I'm going to investigate that further...
Ellen
My husband was diagnosed in November of 1999 - his cancer is rare and the average life expectancy is 6-8 weeks. He died 18 months later, in June of 2001, so it's been 4 years.
I know what you mean about churches not being equipped. One of the hardest things I had to learn was how to socialize as a single person, after being half of a whole for 23 years. God is leading me to work with single adults (and specifically newly single people), but it's hard to get started.
Both of my kids and I are doing well - both kids are starting college this fall (Manda at 16, Tom at 18) and we'll all transfer to Calvin College (go figure) about the same time.
the Piper link is great - I'm glad you appreciated it (although there are a couple of key points I disagree with Piper on, this is not one).
😉
Ellen
Marla, I did read your post about your step-dad. Anniversary dates can be hard - For me, the one year anniversary fell on the same day as the funeral of one of my best friend's sister. The two year anniversary two days after a close co-worker was married ("who's going to walk Manda down the aisle?")
But it gets better.