[caption id="attachment_610" align="aligncenter" width="486" caption="Our new home"]
[/caption]My wonderfully generous father and his wife told me mid last year they wanted to help me and my brother buy property so we weren't paying rent anymore. They proposed we find something big enough for me, Nick and mum to live together. It was a somewhat daunting proposition. I was only earning a minimum through my graphic design business while juggling almost full time study. Much as I love my brother, I didn't really think we'd be able to live together. Much as he loves me, my brother didn't want to live anywhere I was looking, and only wanted the inner city. We certainly couldn't afford anything there that would be big enough for the three of us.
I had a few half-hearted looks at things that were way out of our price range and felt quite defeated by the whole thing. I still didn't (and don't) have a steady job, so what bank would give me a mortgage? I kept praying about it, knowing that God would provide somewhere if he wanted this to happen.
We decided that Nick would look for his own place, and mum and I would look for something together. Dad suggested mum and I get a joint loan, which immediately made the whole prospect more viable for me, as she has a steady income and it would mean that she was getting an asset too.
We have friends who live in the St George region (Bexley, Wolli Creek, Bardwell Park). It seemed a world away to me, just because I'm not familiar with the area, but it really isn't any further away than the inner west or even other parts of the Eastern suburbs. So I started looking there, and almost immediately found a semi in South Hurstville that was at an unbelievable price. I realised it was on a very busy main road, next to a petrol station. I didn't hope for much, but the pictures looked nice, so I went to see it.
And now we're buying it. I never, ever, ever thought I would be in this position. When I thought about the future, it never included me owning property. Ever.
[caption id="attachment_609" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="A prettyish sort of wilderness - I hope to build a writing studio here one day"]
[/caption]We prayed hard throughout the whole process, for wisdom and patience and trust. We can certainly see God's providence in this! It was just so unbelievably smooth. There were no other people looking at it when I went to see it, because the weather had been bad and people weren't really out and about, so we had no competition for it. We offered less than the asking price and got it. The bank approved our loan with no problems. Even tiny things have had excellent timing like the scheduled council clean up is around the time we move, and our rent is due to increase in April (after we move out).
[caption id="attachment_608" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="The back room"]
[/caption]I know my security does not lie in worldly things, and that bricks and mortar can be taken away from you as easily as anything else. But I also know that God lovingly and lavishly provides, in his own way, in his own time. How could I ever doubt him? I pray that somehow God will be glorified by us living there, that we will use this house well for ministry, and that mum and I will thrive living there.
1 comment :