Answered Prayers

God has just been amazing Tim and me with answering prayers, opening and closing doors, showing us how BIG He is and that He can do what He says He can do. Our biggest answered prayer right now is that when our lease is up in August, we have somewhere new to live. It is a small duplex in Grand Haven that has been completely updated and remodeled. It is on a quiet road on the outskirts of town and has a yard with trees and lots of shade (yippee!) The landlord seems close to our age and is a really nice guy. He travels more often than he is home so he said it will feel as if we have the place to ourselves most of the time. One of the best parts is that it is $200 cheaper than what we pay at our apartment AND we won't have to pay water and sewer like we do now. Most people at this point ask, "How can it be so much cheaper if you are going to be in a nice area, in a remodeled duplex and it has a washer and dryer?" To which we can only respond, "God did it. We were praying a God-size prayer for cheaper housing, yet hopefully not in an apartment complex because it would be nice for Noah to have a yard to play in. God is the only One who could have worked this out."
He also has been opening doors for Tim to expand on his business. It has been his dream to someday operate his own home restoration business. As of now, he works with 4 other guys. One of them is leaving for college in the fall, one is moving more full-time into the position of youth pastor at his church, one is basically gone already doing a Pepperidge Farm truck route (or something along those lines) and one (Tim's brother) was offered his own dream job in Ohio (which means we are experiencing happiness and some sadness) as a youth pastor. This leaves just Tim, who is at this point the only one whose passion is the home restoration. At the moment, the dream is for him and our other friend, Tim, to partner up and run the business. At this point, it's all a matter of timing...but God keeps opening doors.
It is funny to see how God's plans are so much different from our own. Just back in April, we were so excited about the prospect of moving to Ann Arbor but then felt uneasy about it. Since making the decision to stay in West Michigan, God has been providing Tim with so much work that he has actually had to turn down jobs because he can't fit them into the schedule by the time they want the work done!
Then we were so sure of wanting to move back to Grand Rapids when our lease was up. Slowly, as the time has drawn nearer, the uneasy feeling started creeping back in again. God led us to a home that is just what we were looking for and now we have nothing but peace about it.
We also read a book last week (well, I read it and then briefed Tim on what it said) called "The Treasure Principle" by Randy Alcorn. It has changed our views on giving and how much importance we place on material possessions. I think it was the perfect time to read the book because, as we prepare to move into a smaller space and have a garage sale with some friends, it is easier to go through and pick what items we need to sell. Don't get me wrong, there are some things that you would have to pry out of my cold dead hands before I would get rid of them, but then there are other things that we realize are just taking up space in our home. We have realized the importance of eternal rewards in relation to the temporary earthly things. I looked through the Pottery Barn catalog over the weekend when it came in the mail. It might be the first time I have ever looked at it and not felt a want for anything in there. It all seemed overpriced to me.
So God has been working in the lives of Tim and me. We are so thankful for all He has shown us, for the awesome friends and family He has blessed us with, and for the adventure that He has in store for us.