Moving Mountains

This post is going to be honest... in every way.  It's hard, sometimes, to open up to people and share details of life.  The ups and the downs.  The good times, as well as the bad ones.  We like to share the answered prayers, but not all of the heartaches that come before.

But we, Jason and I, are ready to share ALL OF THESE.  

We've been through a lot in the past few months.  It's been tough.  Everyday.  But we've got SO MUCH to be thankful for... and we know how AWESOME the Lord is.  How He cares for us.  How He hears our prayers.  How He NEVER forsakes us.

Over the past month or so, almost every time we enter the church doors, the pastor has a message for us.  It's unbelievable.  And every time he builds us up, the Devil steps in the VERY NEXT DAY to try and throw us for a loop.  That's just how he works.  But we have stood strong, cried together, prayed together, and had faith that it would all work out.  

And it's working out.

I'll start from the beginning.

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In February, we sold our home.  After YEARS of being on the market, God sent the right people along and we are SO THANKFUL for them.

Jason's parents so graciously took us in and we've been here since right after Jett was born - Feb. 23rd. We began the search for land.  And we found some.  We made an offer just a few days after coming home from the hospital.  Hoping to hear something very soon, we waited patiently for good news.  Everyone else got their good news.  But we were still waiting.... in May.  

After SO MANY disappointments and hurdles, we finally closed on our land.

So, we began making plans for a house.  Long story short, we found one we liked (the same one Jase fell out of back in October).  Decided we might not could afford it in the end (didn't want to stress ourselves out) so we had to find a different one.  Which we did.

Then came MORE WAITING and disappointments.  One after another.  But we never stopped praying and believing that this was meant to be.  He WOULD answer our prayers and we WOULD be given a home.

Every Sunday, we would be uplifted with a message straight from Heaven sent directly to us.  Then the Devil would step in and say, "Not so fast."  Very heartbreaking.  But again, we kept the faith.

After so many months or worrying, making ourselves sick with stress and wondering if this was ever going to actually happen, the Lord showed up again.

This past Sunday, our Pastor preached an awesome mini-message.  It wasn't what he had planned, but it WAS what the Lord had planned.

Matthew 17:20 says:

"Because you're not yet taking God seriously," said Jesus.  "The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, 'Move!' and it would move.  There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle."

There are 2 challenges we face as Christians.

1 - Believing that NO SITUATION is beyond the scope of prayer.  We have to pray about EVERYTHING.  And believe me, it works.

2 - Waiting.  It's hard.  Very hard sometimes.  But we HAVE TO BELIEVE that it will happen in HIS timing.  And it will.  I promise.

Then we have to ask ourselves - What can God really do???

Isaiah chapter 40 explains it so well.  No, I'm not gonna type the whole chapter, but you NEED TO READ IT.

Are you wondering where He is?  Why He doesn't answer your prayers?  Are you tired?  Frustrated?

"Do you not know?

Have you not heard?  

The Lord is the everlasting God,

The Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired and weary,

and His understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary

and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,

and the young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord 

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint."

Isaiah 40:28-31

He WILL move your mountain.  He WILL.

Saturday night, Jason worked all evening and got home about midnight.  I couldn't sleep.  So I laid in the bed and prayed.... about everything.  All of our plans, our finances, our minds, our babies... everything.  And I felt peace.

Our pastor started his sermon Sunday by saying, "whatever you're facing.... if you're trying to build a house..."

He's NEVER used that phrase in a sermon.  But he did Sunday.  And he looked right at us.  He has NO IDEA of the struggles we've had.  Most of our family members don't even know the stress we've been under.  But God knows.  And he shows up RIGHT WHEN WE NEED HIM... every time.

Yesterday, Jason and I had a meeting at the bank to turn in our paperwork for our construction loan.  We've been so worried about finances.  We have money to put down on a house, but we ALSO don't have any furniture.  I really don't want to sleep on an air mattress in our new bedroom or eat dinner off of a card table :)  So we need the numbers to work out to our advantage.  We were beginning to wonder if that was going to happen.

Our "bank guy" said EXACTLY what we wanted to hear, "It's all going to be okay." 

It's all going to be okay.

We left that meeting feeling ON TOP OF THE WORLD.  The happiest we've been in months!!!

So we went to grab some lunch.  Jason sat at the table while I ordered our food.  He says he was praying, giving Him thanks for answering our prayers.  

The Lord said, "Oh, I'm not done yet.... just watch."

A few minutes later, his boss called.

"Be at work tomorrow at 6 a.m. with clothes for 7 days.  We're heading to Tampa."

DO WHAT???  Wow.  Now THAT'S HOW MY GOD WORKS.

He never ceases to amaze me.

We've been saving money like crazy over the past few months, but "things" keep popping up.  If you've ever built a house, I'm sure you understand.  $500 here... $1000 there.  Geez.

Some overtime would definitely help.  And especially with Florida Power and Light.  

We're talking PREMIUM PAY, people.  

Nope, He wasn't finished.  He SHOWED UP AND SHOWED OUT!!!  In a big way.

I'm definitely going to miss my husband over the next week or so.  

But as I lay in bed last night praying for safety over Jason and the other men, the Lord said.... 

"This is an open door.  And it will be a blessing to your family."

I'll remember that in the hard and lonely times.

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Now, I'm sure some people stopped reading a LONG time ago.  And that's fine.

And I'm sure some of you are wondering WHY we decided to share all of this, as well as some intimate details of our struggles, with the world.

But our Pastor ended his sermon Sunday with this message.

When the Lord moves your mountains, GO TELL IT!  Don't just sit at home and thank Him.

Go share it with others.  Put it on Facebook, Twitter, or whatever else you do.

Well, this is what I do.  And I had to share it!

We made that decision on the way home from the bank yesterday.

The Devil might not like it, and he might not be finished messing with us.

But we are NOT GOING TO ALLOW HIM to turn our blessing into a disappointment.

We'll continue to give thanks.  And watch our mountains move.