Real Life Stories – Page 38

Tortured for Christ

Leave a Comment / March 28, 2011 March 28, 2011

**A group of armed Muslims opened fire on Christians at an open-air prayer meeting in Pakistan this week, killing two men.

**Anti-Christian violence has increased in northern Nigeria since January of this year, when 200 armed Fulani youths attacked churches and Christian homes. Sectarian violence between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria began in 2001 with a large-scale riot in the city of Kaduna.

**In Uzbekistan, six Christians leading a service at a nursing home on March 13 were detained by police and charged with resisting police orders and violating procedures for conducting a meeting.

**The battle over Bibles continues in Malaysia. In January 2011, port authorities confiscated 30,000 Bibles that a branch of Gideons International had ordered.

This is a sampling of some of the news stories regarding persecution against Christians going on right now. I read another story this morning of an Egyptian Christian persecuted for helping Muslims who have converted to Christianity by hanging him upside down naked and beating him severely.

This is not hundreds of years ago. This is right now. In this world we live in. Sometimes I feel we are so sheltered in our little American world. Sure, we take some slander or we may even take some damage to our reputation if we stand for Christ. There is a cost. But the cost is minimal, if you think about many other parts of the world.

Thinking on this leads me down several different trails-

First, is my faith sure and certain, so that I will stand strong, if (some would say “when”) that day comes?

Second, am I praying for my Christians brothers and sisters who are being tortured for Christ? They are part of our heavenly family. They need our prayers!

Third, am I living with a grateful heart for the freedoms I have? For the freedom from hunger? For the freedom to worship in church without interruption from the government? For the freedom to own a Bible?

And fourth, I can’t help but think that many of the things that upset all of us…people things…circumstance things…job things…just wouldn’t be as big of an issue if we knew we might lose our life the next day. Perspective is such a big deal, isn’t it?? What am I upset or disturbed about that would really matter if I may be imprisoned tomorrow for my faith? What argument or debate (and there are some, but not as many as we think) is worth destroying a relationship with a fellow brother, if we both may be killed tomorrow?

We are free. And these questions do not haunt us the way they haunt our fellow believers. And I thank God for that. Let’s live with grateful hearts. Let’s make sure it is God’s opinions directly from His Word that we take a stand for…not our own. And let’s pray that God would give us a godly perspective on the trials and problems we face.

The above examples are from website persecution.com. They also have a sister website, prisoneralert.com, which focuses on Christians who are imprisoned for their faith. Both are a great place to go if you would like to read more about this topic.

Growing Up

Leave a Comment / March 17, 2011 October 1, 2014

My son wrote an essay for an English assignment the other day. The topic was something like this: “something you have done for a long time and how it has changed as you have grown up”. He picked the topic of a trade show that our family business participates in. In the essay, he shared how, when he was a little boy, he would stand in his company shirt and try to look official, desperately hoping that someone would take him seriously by asking him a question about our company. One day, someone did ask him a question– but he didn’t know the answer. He found out the answer and made sure to know it for the next time.

Fast forward to this year’s show. Not only did he get asked lots of questions, but he knew most of the answers, too. You see, in the natural progression of growing up, he has learned about our company and about the trade. He has become a young man who can talk with others about our company and even our industry quite knowledgeably.

Let’s think about that in light of our Christian walk. How many of us are growing up in our knowledge of God’s Word? How many of us still squirm when we are approached by someone who has a specific problem or question, struggling to remember the location of the verse or even which book of the Bible addresses the question? Or we have a great chance to witness, but we are shy because we are scared we won’t know what to say. When it comes right down to it, we don’t know the Bible. We say we believe it, but we are like that little boy in the company shirt, standing around looking official, but not really knowing our stuff. We may look like grown-ups but we are little children spiritually.

We blame our memories. We blame our lack of time and busy lifestyles. We blame lots of things. But maybe we need to stop worrying about why and just do something about it.

As I write this, I am condemning myself. I have been a Christian, by the incredible grace of God, for a very long time. My knowledge of God’s Word is not in accordance with how long I have been a Christian. I have recently been convicted of this and have made some changes in my Bible study time.

I want to know God’s Word. I want to be able to “always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you” (see verse below). Because let’s face it–God blesses us by using us, but he can’t use us if we aren’t ready to be used. We need to take our focus off of our own agendas and our own busy lives and make some room in our lives to learn God’s Word. We need to stop relying on the little bits of knowledge we may have learned years ago–in Bible school or Bible quizzing or church–and start digging into the word, perhaps even memorizing some passages.

We need to start growing up in the Lord.

1 Peter 3:15
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

I don’t care what you think.

Leave a Comment / March 7, 2011 March 7, 2011

Yes, you read that correctly. Only it’s not true. I sort of wish it was true. But, even though I may state it emphatically at times…I actually DO care what you think.

I think we all care to some extent. Some of us more than others. Some of us are completely driven by what our parents…or spouse…or children…or friends THINK about us. We are concerned that they like us. We want them to think we are “relevant”, “cool”, or at the very least “intelligent”. And this is all fine and good. But not if it comes at the expense of doing the right thing according to scripture.

Caring about what people think is actually what makes sharing our faith and standing for truth most difficult. At least for me. It is easier to just not say anything. Right? Anyone agree with me? I find it so easy to focus on the present (“they will think I am too radical”; “they will think I am not cool”; “they will think I am narrow-minded and intolerant”) instead of keeping my focus on the Truth as presented in God’s Word.

There are SO many out there trying to destroy the Gospel. Through outright lies in the world or through deceptions labeled as “Christian”. We have to keep going back to God’s Word. We have to KNOW it, STUDY it, and LIVE it. We need to proclaim, as Paul did in Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”

Only then will we have the confidence to stand up for Christ. Only then can we be used by Him. If we are busy trying to fit in with the world, we will lose many opportunities. If we are busy trying to separate our physical selves from anything to do with the world, we won’t even have opportunities. But if, in contrast, we are busy living lives IN the world but are not OF the world, so that people see that we are DIFFERENT…if we show that we love God and not the things of the world…if we aren’t ashamed or afraid to talk to people about it…if we don’t care what people think…well, that is when we will be most effective for Jesus Christ.

Feelings…Nothing More Than Feelings

1 Comment / February 28, 2011 February 28, 2011

Do any of you remember that song of…was it the 70s?? I guess you would have to be older than 40 to remember that song. I don’t even know the rest of the song. But that first line…Feelings/Nothing more than feelings…is critical for me to remember today. Maybe for you, too?

I came off of the busiest week of my year (it is like this every year…you’d think I would get used to it!). It is full of preparation and activity and not much housework. When it is finally over and I wake up on Monday morning, I find myself feeling exhausted after all of the activity…feeling discouraged about the housework that is screaming at me to be done….feeling grumpy because I am so tired and discouraged. The question is: will I allow myself to obey those feelings? Or will I obey God’s Word? Will I be short-tempered, impatient, unloving, and selfish? Or will I be long-suffering, kind, and unselfish?

I think all of us are susceptible to giving in to our feelings. They scream inside our heads. Sometimes so loudly that we can’t hear anything else. But if we don’t heed them, it gets easier and easier to ignore them.

It makes me think of Paul and Silas in Acts 16. They were beaten with rods until they had “many stripes” and then they were thrown in prison in an inner cell with their feet in stocks. I can’t help but wonder if…had they given in to their feelings…they would have laid there plagued by discouragement and blaming God for allowing this to happen. I could just see it. “God, how could you have allowed this? We were doing YOUR work and you allowed us to get beaten, thrown in prison? What will become of us? What now? Are we going to die? Are we going to endure more beatings?” They (like I often do) could have stewed about what is to come. They could have (as I often do) dwelled on all the horrible things they had endured and were continuing to endure. They could have blamed God.

But if you read on, you see in verse 25 that they prayed and sang hymns. Prayed and sang hymns. Yes, I wrote that twice on purpose. For my own good. I don’t know about you, but when I am giving in to feelings of discouragement or depression or selfishness or anger, the last thing on my mind is praying or singing hymns (or worship songs!)

I wonder if Paul and Silas sang because they FELT like it…or if they felt like it after they started singing?

And so, today, I hope- instead of focusing on my discouragement and exhaustion…instead of complaining- I hope that I can work above my feelings and be a blessing to my family and friends. I hope you can do the same! Because, after all, they are only feelings. Nothing more than feelings.

Achy Breaky Heart

2 Comments / February 17, 2011 February 24, 2015

I just finished reading GQ’s article on Billy Ray Cyrus. Not because I love country music. And I can take or leave the Hannah Montana TV show. But our family loved (and still loves) the show Doc, which Billy Ray starred in in the early 2000’s. I was curious to see what he had to say.

I found the whole interview heart-breaking. Truly heart-breaking. Here was a man with lots of talent who had made a lot of wrong choices. But I think the following quote on parenting is probably one that can teach all of us something:

“How many interviews did I give and say, ‘You know what’s important between me and Miley is I try to be a friend to my kids’? I said it a lot. And sometimes I would even read other parents might say, ‘You don’t need to be a friend, you need to be a parent.’ Well, I’m the first guy to say to them right now: You were right. I should have been a better parent. I should have said, ‘Enough is enough–it’s getting dangerous and somebody’s going to get hurt.’ I should have, but I didn’t. Honestly, I didn’t know the ball was out of bounds until it was way up in the stands somewhere.”

If you are the parent of any teenagers, I would imagine you have struggled with this issue. To be a cool friend or to be the irritating parent. Because it is really difficult to be both. There is this innate sense of wanting our kids to like us. And, yet, ironically, the more we cater to that desire, the less our kids do like us.

Instead of a rock in the storm, we become someone who shifts our position with every slight change in the wind. Do we do this because we truly think it is okay? No, most of the time, we will bend our position because we don’t want them to be mad at us. We feel like giving them an answer they don’t like will cause them to not like us.

I have found myself in this position many a time. And I have chosen both ways. I can honestly admit to the following–

When I have gone against my better judgment and allowed something that I knew I shouldn’t allow, I have always been sorry. Sometimes it is just for a moment and sometimes that little thing I allowed turns into a bigger problem. But, in contrast, when I have stood up for what’s right and not allowed something that they truly wanted with all of their heart, I have always felt great. And if you believe that, let me tell you another story! Actually, that doesn’t always feel so good. Sometimes I feel like I absolutely did the right thing. But many times I second-guess myself. Occasionally, I even change my mind. And, sometimes, I should change my mind.

And that’s where the friend part comes in. We need to listen to our teenagers. Listen to their side of the story. Listen to why they want to do what they want to do. And then let’s take them to God’s Word. Often, we would still stand by our decision as parents. But that was often after lots of discussion. Teenagers need reasons. And, as they get older and mature spiritually, gradually put some of the final decisions in their hands. That way they may make mistakes on the little things and hopefully be preparing for bigger decisions.

If I can do anything before my kids leave this house, it will be to instill in them accountability to GOD. If they think they need to please me, then they will do what they want when they leave. But if they realize that God is always with them and they are living to please Him, rather than to live by some man-made set of rules, then one of my main goals as a parent will have been accomplished.

As the decision-making becomes more my kids’ responsibility and less of mine, the friendship grows. See, the friendship comes later. Trying to be friends with your 13 year old is a big mistake. But hang on a few years. If you hold your ground with your 13 year old, your 20 year old will be more of a friend. I can only imagine that the friendship continues to grow as they grow into an adult, and then perhaps even a deeper friendship as they become parents themselves.

Thankfully, whatever happens and wherever we find ourselves right now, God is gracious and loving and can work beyond our mistakes. So, just keep praying for your kids and trying to find that balance. And don’t get tired! Make sure your teenagers know that you are there for them and that you will keep God’s standards in your family, no matter what is going on in their friends’ houses!

Joshua 24:15

Note (2/24/15) I wrote this almost exactly four years ago now. Since then, Miley Cyrus has went completely wild. I am truly saddened over that situation. How much worse her situation is now than it was even then. How her parents must mourn over her choices.

We, too, are at a very different place– one birdie has already spread her wings and flown away and two more are making their plans to fly this coming summer. Only one birdie will be left at home come September. Our kids are certainly not perfect and they make mistakes, but my husband and I have a good relationship with them and with each passing year, we do see a friendship that grows as they become adults. We, too, continue to make our share of mistakes and certainly lay no claim on perfection. We would both say, however, that we have never regretted standing our ground and providing boundaries on entertainment choices, activities, and friendships. If anything, we feel like we left way too much of the world invade our home and would probably change some things if we could do it over.

And so let’s remember– strict boundaries without explanation are the cause of most rebellion. Permissive love without boundaries also leads to waywardness. Only boundaries placed with love is a winning combination when it comes to parenting. My prayer is that this will encourage you to stand strong in biblical conviction, but with so much grace and love.

Is This Really Love?

Leave a Comment / February 7, 2011 October 23, 2015

Maybe I have grown a bit skeptical after so many years of being married. Perhaps my doubts have come with age and life experience. You learn things. Like about love, for instance. I like a good love song as well as the next person. There really is something special about someone crooning their love for their soul mate. But one of my kids had a song on the other day and as I listened to the lyrics–well, I pitied the poor girl that the song was being sung to because there is no way on earth that the song could be true. Here are a few of my (not so) favorite lines–

Oh her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they’re not shining

Oh, really? Eyes that shine that bright would look…odd.

Her hair, her hair falls perfectly without her trying

Maybe I’m just jealous? My hair has never done that.

She’s so beautiful and I tell her every day

Every day?? Good for you! Keep that up for 50+ years–even when that stuff above isn’t true anymore.

And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for awhile

Wow! Maybe I AM jealous. I don’t think even one person has ever stopped and stared when I smile.

You know Id never ask you to change; if perfect is what you’re searching for then just stay the same

Perfect? Is anyone perfect? Can you live with someone even a few months and still believe they are perfect?

We can only conclude that the sweet guy who wrote this song has not been through real deep waters with this girl. It is probably a new relationship, just blossoming with infatuation.

I know, I know…I am being so skeptical. And I definitely agree that there is a place for “sweet nothings” and romance. But for some reason this love song really got to me. I guess it’s because by now I am fully aware that love isn’t about how someone looks. Or about how they smile. And if my husband actually said I was perfect, I would know that he is either A) stupid or B) lying.

Is this what our kids are expecting when they fall in love? It’s not realistic. It’s not practical. While for an infinitesimal amount of time someone might feel like this about someone, those feelings do not last very long. Sooner, rather than later, the hair is sticking out all over the place and the eyes are burning with anger, not shining with love. And I don’t think the whole world stops and stares when even the most beautiful movie star smiles.

True and abiding love comes when someone loves you in spite of your faults. Your lack of perfection. Your angry eyes. Your gray hair. They love you because they have committed to love you. They stick by your side, even when they don’t feel like they love you. Because the feelings will come back around again. After all, love that lasts is more about commitment than feelings.

And, so, I will take a husband who knows my imperfections and loves me, anyway. A husband who is honest with me about my faults and wants to see me become a better person. A husband who will stick by me, even in the worst of times–even when I am the worst me. And, I, in return, will do the same for him. Because that is what makes true love last.

Don’t Believe Everything You Hear

2 Comments / February 3, 2011 August 30, 2014

A long time ago, a young man and a young woman fell in love and decided to get married. Several months before their wedding day, they decided to attend some marriage counseling sessions, knowing that this would help them to identify any future problem areas on which they may have disagreements– such as how many kids, financial issues, and how to handle the in-laws.

The pastor with whom they were meeting gave the engaged couple an “official” personality test, designed to determine any possible problem areas in their new life together. The young woman eagerly filled it out, wondering what wonderful things she would find out about her and her future husband’s relationship when the results came back. She was in for a big surprise!

When the next week’s marriage counseling session came around, the young couple sat before the pastor and were told that the test showed that the two of them should not even get married. Should not get married! The test showed that they were quite incompatible. This was certainly not the report that either of them was expecting to hear.

Obviously, my husband and I did not listen to what a test had to say about us and we continued on our path to wedded bliss. 23 years later, here we are–still best friends, more in love now than we were then. Hopefully, we are a bright and shining testimony that, with God at the helm, any relationship can work.

But as I remembered this incident many years ago, I started thinking about we should never take anything at face value. We have to be very careful to not believe everything we hear. Just because it is on the 6pm news or your pastor said it does not mean it is true. There is only one place we can find the Truth and that is in God’s Word. Any thought, philosophy, or science that disagrees with scripture is a lie.

Here are a few popular lies that we hear today:

-The world took billions of years to create/form.

The Bible says God created the world in 7 days (Genesis 1). If God didn’t create the world in seven literal days then death entered the world before sin. That changes everything.

-Listen to your heart.

The Bible says the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). Listening (and obeying) our hearts is the cause of a lot of heartache in this world.

–Live your best life now!

Really? That is not what I read in the Bible (John 16:33, I Peter 1:6-7). II Timothy says it best: “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” It can’t be any more clear than that. I wonder what a Christian facing great persecution would have to say about living his best life now?

–Make your dreams come true at all costs.

Make your dreams come true. Your dreams. There is the problem. When we turn to God, we give up our dreams. When we choose to follow Jesus, we also choose to deny ourselves (Mark 8:34). This is not a popular philosophy today, is it? DENYING ourselves and laying our dreams at the foot of the cross, living to glorify our heavenly Father instead of ourselves. Even as I write that sentence, I almost cringe knowing that even most fellow Christians do not ascribe to this “sold out” Christianity.

When we received the discouraging results of the personality test, I admit I did really have to struggle through that, worrying about that “nugget” of man’s wisdom for a day or two. But I knew that my fiance loved me. And I knew that I loved him. And, most importantly, I knew that we both loved God and were headed the same direction in our goals for our faith, family, and finances. What more could you ask than that?

And so, I am glad I chose not to believe that particular lie. It is almost daunting to think of the life I would have missed, had I backed away in fear! Not everything we hear is true or has merit.

How important it is that we put everything through the grid of the Bible. Satan is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour and, while the test we took as a young engaged couple didn’t really fly in the face of scripture, there are many things we are told today that do. Let’s pay attention so that we are not deceived.

Your kid won’t die if they don’t get a guinea pig.

Leave a Comment / December 20, 2010 December 20, 2010

Christmas week. A wonderful time of food, family get-togethers, church activities, and...”Christmas Lists”. Have you felt the pressure? The pressure to try and do everything possible to give our kids their hearts’ desire at Christmastime? We love our children. It seems a natural outpouring of our love to give our kids what they want for Christmas. But sometimes, they just do not need the newest, latest gadget. Or sometimes you can’t afford what they want.

Well, I am here to tell you that they will survive! Is that good news or what?? (I hope you hear the sarcasm in my voice as I write this!) I know you already know this. It just seemed like a good week to mention this in case you forgot…

A few months ago, one of my daughters desired a guinea pig with all of her heart. She spent HOURS researching guinea pig cages and guinea pig food and anything else that had to do with guinea pigs. She pestered me for about two weeks straight to let her have a guinea pig. We have owned rabbits, fish, cats, and birds at various times in our household during the last 20 years. We currently have two dogs. I do not feel the need to have more pets at this point in my life. But she would not leave me alone. She pleaded. She cried. She begged. I finally came up with what I thought was a pretty ingenious idea. I told this daughter that if she could keep her room clean for a whole month, we would re-visit the idea of the guinea pig. I had a pretty good idea that one of two things would happen. She would A) either forget about the guinea pig or B) grow tired of trying to keep her room clean.

And guess what? I was right on both counts. I haven’t heard anything further about a guinea pig for a long time. She made a decision that a guinea pig just wasn’t worth the work involved.

Sometimes our kids’ make it sound like they NEED to have the latest gadget…or that toy they saw on the commercial…or, in our case, the pet that their cousin has. And sometimes we can find ourselves believing them. But my little experiment showed me that, not only do they not need it, but that most kids will forget all about it eventually.

Isn’t parenting fun??

GPS vs. the Map

Leave a Comment / October 28, 2010 August 10, 2016

We were on our way to the beach. Attached to our truck was our 5th wheel camper. My husband decided to go a different way he had heard about from one of his customers–supposedly a more scenic route. We had traveled it twice before but were not really all that familiar with it. We did not have a map along. We had a GPS along. He figured he could figure it out with the little machine that talks.

Wrong.

As we turned off of our much traveled path, I expressed my hesitancy. I was comforted by his assurances that he would definitely be able to figure it out. However, as we traveled along the road, the landmarks became increasingly unfamiliar. We were drawn further and further into major suburbia– not the place you want to be with a 5th wheel attached to your truck!

The problem came when the GPS did not have the same directions in mind that my husband did. The GPS did not know we had a camper attached and was taking us through areas we did not really want to go; areas in which it was extremely difficult to maneuver with a camper attached to you.

Finally, we stopped and bought a map and tried to figure it out. In the meantime, it started to rain–and not just a few drops. It was a downpour of the most severe kind–the kind of rain that it’s hard enough to get where you need to go when you know where you’re going, much less when you have no idea where you are going! Put a couple of kids in the backseat with their accompanying comments, and you can start to imagine the situation. It was not good. (And we didn’t handle it real well…but we won’t discuss that here!)

We did eventually figure it out. After we had crossed the bridge over the Delaware River into familiar territory, I took a close look at the map to see where we had gone wrong. From that perspective I could see exactly what we had done and what the GPS was thinking. And, we realized, that at one point, had we listened to the GPS, it would have gotten us out of the mess we were in. But we no longer trusted the little talking machine to guide us.

Sometimes it would be nice to have a map of our lives. From that perspective we could see the roads, rivers, mountains, and curves. We could see that, while we may have taken a detour, we are at least headed in the right direction. But, we don’t have a map, and just like we got stuck in the mire of traffic, rain, and confusion on our way to the beach, so we get stuck in the emotion, sin, and confusion in our own lives. Sometimes we feel like we have no idea where we are going. But God knows. He knows exactly the path in which He will lead us through our lives. He knows the sinful choices we will make and He knows the godly choices we will make. He knows the parents, the kids, the siblings, and the friends we will have before we are even born. He knows the jobs we will hold. He knows the vacations we will take. He knows the tragedies we will experience and He knows the moments of joy we will experience. Nothing is outside the border of God’s map of our lives. He knows what will happen even before it happens.

I don’t know about you, but I find that comforting. Sometimes when I am facing the unknown and my life is full of question marks, it is good to know that nothing is a question mark to God. If we have acknowledged we are sinners and saved by grace alone, if we are living according to His Word and commandments, and truly allowing Him to direct our paths, we can rest assured knowing that He will be there to guide us in every step. His word tells us that there is no place we can go that He won’t be with us. And His forgiveness awaits us when we cave to that familiar sin. What an amazing comfort to those of us who truly love the God who saved us!

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Romans 8:38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 1: 6-8 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,

The House Auction

1 Comment / October 21, 2010 July 17, 2015

Many years ago, there was a young couple who lived in a tiny apartment. They wanted so very much to own their own home. Their family was growing and they were running out of room. Not to mention the obnoxious neighbor who lived above them, making their existence there less than ideal. One day, someone told them about an adorable little house that was going to be up for auction. The young couple drove by the house and grew excited at the prospect of home ownership. The day came for the auction. The couple waited nervously while a lifetime’s worth of trinkets and furniture were sold. Finally, it was time. Time to put the house up for auction. The bidding started. Oh, no! There was someone very serious about buying the house bidding against them. The price went up…up…it was getting close to their limit. Now it was beyond their limit. They knew their budget. They knew they could not afford to pay more than their limit. They had to back out. Oh, the disappointment! The young wife honestly thought this was the house for them. She walked away from the cute little house in the woods with her head down and tears in her eyes. She knew there would be other houses but she had fallen in love with this one.

Well, a few months passed. The young couple found another house. It was a little rancher in a nice neighborhood. The man who owned it had inherited it from his mother. He did not need the money. The young couple was able to borrow directly from him instead of going through a bank. They settled into their house and spent the next 9 years of their life there.

One day, a few years after the house auction, the young husband was having a conversation with a friend. This friend knew the people that had bought the house at the auction. He went on to share of the many problems this couple was having with the house. They had had to pour thousands of dollars into the house for some major, unforeseen issues.

And that is when the young wife learned an invaluable lesson. God knows best. There is a reason for why He answers “yes” and a reason for why He answers “no”. There is even a reason for why He answers “wait”. Sometimes we are the one who buys the lemon of a house and, even then, God has a plan for our lives.

By now, I am sure you figured out that my husband and I are the ones who lived out the story of the house auction. Sometimes God show us His reasons He has allowed (or, in this case, not allowed) a particular trial or blessing. But, more often than not, we do not know the reasons. That is what walking by faith is all about. We know that God loves us. Our job is to seek Him with all of our hearts. He will take care of the rest (Matthew 6:33-34). So much easier to write than to live.