Joy and sorrow

Today, Troy and I will make our way to Fairmont to pack up the house we called home for 13 years. It's been a week a very mixed emotions for me. On one hand, there is great excitement in beginning this new chapter of our lives. God has proven Himself faithful to us and we are in awe of the way He works out everything in conformity to His will. On the other, I have had one of the saddest weeks yet. Maybe its because I had PMS and was battling strep or maybe its because I have never missed my mom more. Maybe its all three.
As I painted and planned out what I was going to do with each room, I couldn't stop thinking about how happy mom would be for us. She would have been here helping out and working harder than anybody else. Philippians 1:6 says "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Christ Jesus." My mom prayed for our house to sell and for us to find a new home in Fargo. That prayer did not end when mom left this earth. Jesus Christ will continue to carry it out until the day He returns! All of her prayers have touched the throne and continue to be worked out by the Lord. I think of the prayers she prayed for my children, for Joel and his future, for dad and his future...I rest in knowing that He who began a GOOD work in so faithful to complete it.
I have come to understand that yesterday was for me a "storm" day. A day when the clouds roll in, unexpectedly, and unleash buckets of precipitation in the form of tears. The good news is that storms to don't last forever. They do pass and when they do, the sun breaks forth and a new day begins. His mercies are new every morning.

SOLD!

I have often imagined and day dreamed about what that phone call might be like when we hear these words..."There is an offer on your house." Nearly 21 months after placing our house on the market, we received our first and final offer today!
Since the beginning of January, we have asked the Lord to lead us into this New Year. We specifically asked him to sell our house in Fairmont and help us find one in Fargo. For a long time, we thought that it was all just happen and we would wait on the Lord. However, we began sensing that something needed to change and maybe we needed to actually take a step out in faith, trusting God as we proceeded forward.
We gave up the idea that we were going to make any money on our house in Fairmont. The next step then was to lower the house to a price where we would just be able to walk away taking nothing with us. Given the state of the economy, its really the best we could do. The dreaded "foreclosure" word is everywhere and definetly a reality in some cases, but Troy and I both felt that we needed to be good stewards of what God has given us and avoid this at all cost. We then began discussing creative and different ways of financing a new home and starting over again in real estate. God provided for us financially and gave us an awesome lender who really worked well with us.
As we took steps forward, we asked God to place road blocks in the way if this wasn't from Him. We found a house in the neighborhood we wanted, in the school system we liked and in the price range we could afford. When I walked into the house I immediatly knew that we could live there and make it ours. The sellers came down to a price we were very comfortable with and we sensed God's approval. He even blessed us with a house warming gift in this process! We saw that God was opening doors (literally) rather than putting up road blocks.
When our Fairmont house didn't sell in January, we began to ask God to sell our house by the closing date of our new house which is February 23rd. It's been a daily struggle to keep our eyes on Him and not worry about the future. The notion of paying two morgages on one income was certainly overwhelming to both of us. Especially to the main bread winner of the family :)
We have asked our family and close friends to really pray that God would intervene and sell this house. Even this week on Thursday, I received a text message from a good friend who said she was on her knees asking God to sell the house. She gave me Psalm 37 as a reference. Here are a few keys verses that really spoke to my heart:
" Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him."
We commited this to the Lord beginning in January. Troy and I began seeking God's will for us here in Fargo by uniting together in prayer and focusing on the One who could deliver. He is mighty to save!! We are in awe of how He is at work.
The double blessing is that our kids see how to commit something in prayer to Him and then how to listen for His direction. Over the past year and a half, we have asked God for help in this move to Fargo, asked Him for healing, and asked Him to protect us. If we teach our kids anything, its that we trust God when the answer is "no" and we trust Him when He gives us our hearts desire. I don't ever want to forget the look on sweet Hannah's face today when she said "He answered us!" Yes, He did Hannah! He is good, all the time.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. There has been a time to weep and now it is a time to rejoice. Weeping may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning. We are full of joy. Thank you Lord!

We Remember

Five months ago today, we said goodbye and heaven welcomed a sweet saint home. This picture could make me cry my eyes out. "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Cor. 2:9

No self esteem issues here!

It's amazing what a haircut will do for a kid. I love to get my hair cut too....makes you feel a little sassy again! Isaac got his haircut and the stylist spiked it up with gel and ever since, we haven't been able to touch the kids head. Then, we got him this cool new Spiderman blanket to go on his new bed. He was flying high!!

Today, he went to school for the first time with his new do. He walks in and of course, Miss Jodie notices and calls him the "cool kid". He ate that up and tonight, he tells me that all his friends and his teachers think he's cool.

The thought came to me that we are all trying to be "cool" and accepted by those around us. Of course we want to be liked and accepted for who we are, but ultimately our worth comes from our Heavenly Father. Psalm 139:17-18 says "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. " That's amazing to consider that the Lord has us on his mind all the time and He is so in love with us despite how we look, how we feel, and where we are at in life. I want to rest in the promise that He loves me more than I could begin to fathom.

Pictures of new house

These are just a few pics of the new house on Lilac Lane. Obvioulsy, one taken in winter and the other in the fall. My favorite things about the house are the back yard and the kitchen.

Sophia turns 8!!

Miss Sophia turned 8 years old on the first of February! We celebrated by having a rollerskating party with seven friends from school! Mom got on skates and reminisced about skating in Aberdeen at Rollaway USA.

Sophie got a Nintendo DS and was thrilled about this! Daddy made his famous chocolate chip pancakes too!

No eight year olds birthday would be complete without a Hannah Montana birthday cake! Rock on!

Good gifts

I received my beautiful gift from the Lord (and Engraved Euniques) in the mail on Tuesday. It's every bit as wonderful as I could have ever hoped it would be. Thank you Jesus for your great love for me! You can find these and other great gifts at www.engravedeuniques.com.