Hey guys!
I have some big news: In a week I’ll be closing on my first house — well, technically it’s a condo but it’s still exciting.
I’m pretty sure I’ve talked about this before, but it’s a message that needs repeating. It’s a message that needs to be beaten into all of our thick skulls.
God’s plans are ALWAYS greater than our own.
When I first started house hunting I was looking for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house with a fenced-in yard. And you know what? This condo has none of those things. It’s a two-bedroom, one-bathroom first floor condo with a patio I share with my neighbors.
The house hunting was discouraging for sure. I would find exactly what I wanted but it would either be too expensive or not in an ideal location. But my parents (and my longtime family friend/real estate agent — shout out to Gary Morgan!) kept telling me that God would bring around the right house. They told me it would all work out in His timing. And I believed them. I believed He would give me exactly what I wanted in His timing.
After a night of frustration and tears and “lots of sleeping on it” I finally had the revelation I needed. What I wanted isn’t what God had planned for me. And on this side of everything it makes complete sense.
My financial situation will be significantly better in this smaller, cheaper condo than it would’ve been in any house; my commute to work couldn’t be better; I’ll have less to keep clean; the Homeowners Association will take care of a lot of the upkeep and maintenance.
And once I saw my situation from a different point of view I could truly get excited about this new chapter of life. There was no more hesitation. Just peace and confidence that this is exactly what God had planned for me.
And recently I’ve come to recognize where all my frustrations and disappointments stemmed from: I had placed my worth in buying a home and being independent. And when things didn’t go as planned I felt like a loser, like less of an adult. I thought that owning a house would make me a better person, a more fun person, a person more people would want to hang out with.
But of course, God knew better. He knew owning a home wouldn’t solve my insecurities, and He knew the only way to reveal those insecurities to me so I can begin healing was to rip away the thing I was leaning on.
God’s plans don’t always make sense to us at the time — and some of them may not make sense in our time on this earth — but we have to constantly remind ourselves of who God is. He is our Father and our Friend. He is faithful to us even when we are not faithful to Him. He will never leave us nor forsake us (Deut. 31:6). He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb. 13:8). God’s plans are better than our plans and we just need to trust in Him.
The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him. (Psalm 28:7, ESV)
