With our apartment lease up in October (our original TWR departure date), we thought maybe God wanted us to move elsewhere. We thought that it might be a good idea to find a place to stay where we could serve someone while taking what would have been our rent and putting it towards our TWR support. We put out an ad on Craigslist, we sent the word out on the church prayer list. Was there anyone who needed our service in exchange for housing?
Through a series of events, it looked like something might work--a nannying position in West Chester. I spoke with the mom, Sue, through e-mail and on the phone, explaining our situation and everything else about ourselves that I could think of. She had originally only been looking for a part-time nanny, but now we were both thinking... It all sounded so perfect, so I waited to hear back from her after she spoke with her husband; she'd write that night, she said.
I waited impatiently for her e-mailed answer. I felt like everything was weighted on that. "I just really want an e-mail from Sue!" I kept saying, checking my e-mail for the millionth time. Josh Cobb was with me that day, and he can attest to how often I said, "Sue, write me an e-mail!" and "I want an e-mail from Sue!" I just knew things would start getting worked out as soon as we had an answer from Sue.
An e-mail from Sue did come, but it was not the Sue I was expecting. You see, when Mike and I spoke at his church on Missions Night, we ended up going home a bit disappointed. Besides his family, only one or two people even stopped at our table. Thankfully, one woman who did really touched me, and her excitement about our ministry came right back at me. Her name was Sue.
So, the millionth time I checked my e-mail for an e-mail from Sue, this is [an excerpt of] what was waiting:
"...Your mission speaks to me and my husband. We are willing to help in any way that we can. We are both spreading the word of your mission to our families in hopes that we can recruit some more help for you. I know that waiting for God to make His plans known can be frustrating. I pray that you and Michael will stay strong and continue on your journey....
God bless, Sue"
I was floored and painfully humbled. I kept whining to God all day that I needed an e-mail from Sue so that we could move forward with plans. I was and am so human, so narrow-minded, so bent on doing things in a tangible way. He could not have been more clear in his answer. In fact, the Sue from our church just went ahead and typed things out for God. I cannot tell you how strongly used Sue (the unexpected Sue!) in my life that night. As I wringed my human hands to try to work things out logically, God was trying to tell me (oh-so ironically) that He was with us, working things out for good, and asking us to be patient.
As it turned out, instead of providing us with housing, God provided two extra (and wonderful!) nannying jobs for us that will more than cover the money we were hoping to save by moving out; yes, one is with the Sue I spoke with originally. Plus we get to stay in the apartment we love so dearly. PLUS, the relationships I already have with the moms and the girls have been so blessed, and we've gotten to share our heart for Christ already.
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