When I wrote that we continued to pray for it, we were not pushing for us to buying a house. We were praying that if it is His will, let things fall into place. We were praying for guidance for every decision. And most importantly, we were praying for His grace to prepare our hearts, so we can humbly accept His will for us.
We grew together, mentally. Since the time we started sitting down only three or four weeks ago, we had a lot of intelligent and mature conversations. I am the type who feels bad whenever he "audits" me every now and then. I was surprisingly okay when he asked where our money went and why our savings only reached a certain amount. There were a lot of computations involved in those after-dinner conversations. Both were very patient and open to suggestions. We worked together in a way that he led and I did the supporting role by doing errands that were needed in this "project."
On the day the priority numbers were released (which was only last Saturday), we again, like in the past, came as a family (me, hubby and our two kids). Everyone was present and everyone patiently queued. Everyone had a say especially when our first two choices were gone already! Everyone prayed for it. It was a family thing and I couldn't be happier!
Although we were 18th on the line and started queuing before 7am, (some people were more desperate than us!) we still didn't get the original lot we wanted. It could have been a better choice, a bigger lot, a bigger house, a better plan for the value of money (it's bigger but it ends up cheaper) we're paying. But God had a different plan for us. He directed us to another one, which was actually our 4th choice. Initially, we were sad that we didn't get what we wanted (the ones who got our first two choices spent the night in the queue!). But looking back, we were thinking we could have been spared from a possible stress because of the builder assigned on that lot and God probably pointed us to a different lot so we can be more comfortable with our future finances. The lot that we were able to nominate is 8 thousand cheaper than our first choice. (Now there is NO immediate need to sell our lot).
We took a gamble.
I was scared to let go of this opportunity because I felt that the prices of properties will just continue to rise with the rate things are going here and it would have been harder for us to buy our own home. (The first release was only two months ago and prices have gone up $12000 more!) One professional advice we got recently is, "if you have the money now, then go for it!"
I guess, the gamble paid off.
At this point and looking at the future it's still not 100% kink-free. There are still some areas that causes me and Alvin to worry. But I guess, God would want it to leave it like that so we can have an opportunity to have faith. So we can learn how to trust Him and let Him be in-charge!
The kids did and are doing a marvelous job of helping us. They helped us pray for it. They helped us by being patient when we visited display homes, talked to builders, and even when I queued last Saturday for 3 hours! They are helping us save money. They are excited as us, helping Mama and Papa choose possible themes for their future rooms.
The praying part is not over.
We will continue to pray as we continue to grow on with this part of our journey, as a family.
Keep an eye on this space as I will continue to share the developments of this part of our journey.