The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Sarah and I have visited several houses in local neighborhoods in the last two weeks, and we have seen a lot. We have seen a house with wonderful light-filled rooms and a garage with no roof, another house with 6-foot ceilings and windows that start at your ankles, kitchen sinks installed in the pantry, a dead squirrel, and a house with the entire heating system missing - copper, pipes, and even the furnace.
At times like these, I look to the verse that says that "God chose the foolish things of this world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are, so that no one can boast before him." (1 Corinthians 1:27-28)
I know this verse is really speaking about people, but I can't help but imagine that God can do this with houses, too (and in our price range, this is a good thing!). We believe that God can make something beautiful out of what many people would dismiss as "a dump," "in the wrong neighborhood," or "needs some TLC." Of course, Sarah and I are hoping for a house that doesn't need a lot of work, but we have learned to trust that God has our best interests in mind, even if we don't know what they are yet.
For example, when we first moved to Boston, we had a plan for our living situation, but God changed it - we ended up moving into a church's parsonage, and it had more than we hoped for, and everything we needed for our first years in the city - a yard for gardens, a beautiful big bathtub, a kitchen with two ovens, and a driveway. These may seem like minor things, but looking back they were things we may not have even known to ask for, but God knew we needed (or at least would enjoy).
In the same way, we realize that God knows what we will really need for the next season of our lives, and can provide a house that is just right for us, even if we don't know all of what to ask for yet.
