All Praise, Glory and Thanks to God!

Just want to share how good God is. He's such a blesser and good-gift-giver! Long story short, we found a house (it was a HUD so you have to blindly bid online, hoping you're the highest - we were the 9th bid and won by a really small margin!!) and as I reflect on it all, God's fingerprints are just so evident throughout this whole process. We praise you Lord!

For about a week, I've been really focusing on Proverbs 3:5-6 (and NOT coincidentally, Andy's Sunday school lesson covered this verse after I had been thinking about it):

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

Since high school, this has been my life verse. I really cling to this and God always fulfills this promise (imagine that!) in different ways. With home selling/shopping I had plenty of different worries and what-if thoughts, but when I could get my head on straight I would remember this and have peace. He owns every property on the planet! And He's not bound by time. ("will we find something before ours closes?" "will we have to buy one contingent on the sale of our house?") Looking at this past week (that's how much time it's taken to get a contract on our house and put a contract on a new one - praise God!), our paths have been so straight! God blesses us all the time, and sometimes the blessings are crystal-clear and HUGE - that's how I feel this week.

I've also been focusing on Matthew 6, when Jesus tells us not to worry about what we'll eat, drink or wear (or where we'll live!),

^32"For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

So I want to seek Him first and trust that God will arrange it how He sees best - because He loves us and owns the cattle on a thousand hills!

Also, one that I continually have to remind myself of is:

¹⁹"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

I DON'T want my treasure to be on earth. I want my heart to be sold out for the Lord and seeking His kingdom, and just thankful for material blessings without my heart being focused on them. Is that a balancing act for anyone but me? I can so easily get wrapped up in decorating, furniture choices (not that we're buying any yet, but), appliances - my thinking gets so worldly so quickly. Want to be wrapped up in His work...change me Lord.

Anyway, I feel so blessed the way things worked out on selling and buying. Of course closing on both isn't for a few weeks and things could fall through, so we'll see. Our new house (as far as we know now) is in Wylie:


It's NOT a fixer-upper like we had set out for, but definitely was a great price. Every little thing I had hoped for (can't tell you how excited I am about a jetted garden tub - NEVER had that! and the kitchen over-looking the living room). Andy has such amazing home renovating skills, but we agree that it will be so nice to have more family weekend time. Even on a new house there's always a project anyway, right? So we're beyond thankful.

¹ We give thanks to you, O God,
we give thanks, for your Name is near;
men tell of your wonderful deeds.
Ps. 75:1