The bank accept our offer on our potential first home! We couldn't be more thrilled! Last week was LONG and emotional as we were both glued to our cell phones for any news we might hear from Barry, our lovable Realtor. After putting an offer in on Tuesday morning and seeing the bank let deadlines slide by (all the while knowing there was another buyer who wanted to place a competing offer), we got word on Friday afternoon that our counter-offer was accepted, along with some perks we threw into the conditions, hoping the bank would help us out with some extra expenses!
We have inspections (home, well/septic) this week, so pending the results, we're free and clear. The home was built in 2003 and is an unfortunate foreclosure. Due to its young age, we (along with our Realtor and my oh-so-thorough father-in-law) are pretty confident that there won't be any issues. Well, major issues at least. (After Thursday evening, expect an update on how the inspections went.)
This poor home has been on the market since July and was left in...well...kind of a sorry state. When we looked at the home the first time, it was obvious that the previous owner left against his (or her, I suppose) will. Everything of use/value is gone. The appliances (obviously), towel racks, closet organization systems, porch lights, etc. The icing on the cake...the breaker for the basement sump pump was flipped off, allowing water to flood the bottom half of the oh-so-spacious basement. So when we saw it, the carpet had been ripped up, and the bottom half of the drywall was cut away. (Which, to us, is great because Dan wanted a basement he could work on and make his own.)
So it'll need some T.L.C. over time. We'd love to do everything right away, but we'll need to save a little over a few months and pick away at projects. Right now our closing date is set for December, so once we're owners, we plan to kick our D.I.Y. skills into high gear and aim for a move-in date at the beginning of January.
All this, of course, depends on the inspections. We've been praying about this for months, and as smoothly (and quickly!) as everything has gone, I can't help but feel that this is what the Lord has for us at this time and is gifting us greatly and, once again, demonstrating His goodness and faithfulness to us.
Our (hopefully!) new home...with two UGLY trees blocking the beautiful front entrance
The front door - I had to show a picture since the trees were blocking it. (Those trees WILL come down, F.Y.I.)
The front door - I had to show a picture since the trees were blocking it. (Those trees WILL come down, F.Y.I.)
When Dan was unemployed and we were still trying to save up for a house that we knew was in our future (somewhere...eventually), I had no idea that the experience would be this rich. I'd heard all of the encouraging lines: "God has something good for you", "Keep being prayerful and faithful - God will bless you and make your life an example of His goodness." I believed it (and still do), but at the time it sounded so cliche, and like things I was telling myself only to keep trucking and not drown in a pit of hopelessness.
So this morning while I was getting ready for work I had to just stop and sit when I heard these words coming from my bathroom radio:
"Would you dare, would you dare to believe that you still have a reason to sing? 'Cause the pain that you've been feeling, it can't compare to the joy that's coming. So hold on, you've got to wait for the light. Press on and just fight the good fight. 'Cause the pain that you've been feeling, it's just the dark before the morning."
And it hit me that all those phrases and all the spiritual encouragement Dan and I received, it wasn't all just cliche. It's actually happening and unfolding before our very eyes. I shed a few tears of humility that God, in this time, has chosen MY life as a way to demonstrate His faithfulness, His mercy, His goodness to people around me. God took Dan and I through a wilderness where we couldn't see very far ahead of us and we didn't know when it would end - we just had each other and the Lord. And now, on the other side, He is looking on us with love as we trusted Him to bring us through a season that He chose to bestow on us in His all-knowing plan.
Even if the inspection falls through and we don't end up in this house, (I hope not, because I love it!) this experience has opened my eyes, once again, to the reality of God. To the reality of His promise and how it's impossible for Him to be unfaithful to me. ("I'm running back to Your promises one more time, Lord that's all I can hold onto.")
But now, in this season of harvest and overflowing joy, I'm reminded: "This is my prayer in the harvest, when favor and providence flow, I know that I'm filled to be emptied again, the seed I've received I will sow."
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