Miracle House

When we made an offer on the house next door to Ben's parents, the owner was leasing it to a family with three children.  "They're a really nice family," Dad Turner said when we were sitting out on the patio around the beginning of August thinking about trying to buy the house.  "I don't like to think we'll be evicting them."

We were all kind of concerned about making an offer because we didn't want to be in any way responsible for the tenants being kicked out of their home; however, we did know that their lease was up soon and they weren't sure they wanted to re-sign because they were concerned about how far it was from the house to the school their kids attended. 

Ben and I began praying about the beginning of August that if God really did have it in mind for us to have the house, then he would make it an overwhelming blessing to the tenants and would provide a house for them that they would be thrilled to move to.  We watched them mowing the lawn and playing with the dog in the back yard and thought, "what are we doing, offering to buy a house someone else is living in when they don't have any say in it?"

In the process of making the offer, though, the seller's realtor contacted the tenants and found out they were actually very much interested in moving. They had a long drive to get both to their church and the charter school where their kids were and they were hoping to find someplace a lot closer.  However, they legally had until next April to find another home, so we would potentially be without a home ourselves until then. They wanted to move, but they told us when they had us walk through the house in September that they wouldn't realistically be able to even begin the house hunting until late December or more likely January due to the way the husband's job is.

When Ben and I discussed how to pray about this, we decided to keep praying that God would provide the tenants with a house that would be absolutely perfect for them and would show up at the perfect time, whatever that time was.

Two weeks ago, we found out that the tenants had in fact found a place and were planning to be out by November first. That was a blessing in and of itself, but on Saturday we actually learned more of the story when the man told it to Ben's dad and then to Ben.

Apparently, they weren't even really looking for a house because they had mentally shelved it until December or January; but then a house suddenly went on the market within walking distance of their kids' school and fifteen minutes from their church. Not only that, but it was a lease-to-own home, so they had the chance to own it themselves in a few years. 

They applied to rent and were accepted: so they are very excited, their kids are very excited, and the wife's words to Ben were, "Isn't it good how the Lord takes care of us?"

Again: if the definition of a miracle is an event that occurs with specific timing to bring glory to God, this particular house has brought glory to God again and again and again. What an amazing, amazing thing.  We have a Miracle House.