The Time I Asked God for a House
The Story of How We Got Our House
When Mark and I were looking for our future home, I stumbled upon this abandoned house and it was not for sale. I repeat, not for sale. This little house was owned by the bank and had been sitting unoccupied for 4 years. When I saw it, a dream played out before me of what the house could be and what our life could be like. So do you know what I did?
I parked in front of this not for sale abandoned little house and I asked God for it. I’m not kidding. I said, “God if it is your will, please, someway, somehow, give us this house.”
This seemed an impossible request because as I mentioned, it wasn’t for sale (a very necessary part of the picture) and it had been abandoned for 4 years and owned by the bank with no sign of going for sale anytime soon. If it did go for sale, we would not be able to offer a competitive bid and investors would likely buy it in cash because it provided a good equity opportunity. A seemingly hopeless dream.
We were running low on time with our wedding coming up, so after months of looking for homes and still not finding anything that compared to this little dream, I prayed in front of the house second time. This time it was a prayer of surrender. “God, you know I want this house. That is my will but if it is not your will then I surrender it to you. I trust you have a better plan for us. I am letting my plan go.” It was hard to drive away and truly let it go but I knew I needed to. I needed to stop comparing every home we found to this little dream, besides our wedding was 6 months away and we were getting to the point where we needed to hop on whatever we could find.
But.
Then.
It.
Happened.
I got a notification on my phone, the house was FOR SALE. It was listed with an “owner occupancy” clause which meant they were not accepting bids from investors. We put in a blind bid and after a LONG month of waiting, to our joy and surprise, we learned our offer was accepted.
When we were signing the closing documents for our home, our realtor remarked, “I honestly don’t know how you got the deal on this house.” I knew the answer. It was the Lord.
A Change in Me
This experience changed me. I had never asked God for something practical like this. By practical, I mean, asking God for some concrete need like to help with finances, or to provide a needed appliance, or in my case, a specific home. I honestly felt a little crazy parking in front of a house that was not for sale and asking God for it.
Praying for this house, something that was largely out of my control and seeing it come to fruition opened my eyes to the fact that God answers practical prayers according to his will. Discerning his will has its challenges but whatever the case, we should entrust all things to God, even and perhaps especially the practical things.
What are Your Practical Needs?
I am not sure what you have on your list of wants or needs: maybe you are in a place where you are making ends meet and need financial stability, or maybe you need to find a new job, maybe you are in need of a new friend community, maybe something major needs to be fixed in your home, maybe you need new shoes, or to figure out schooling for the kids, or maybe its something simpler like you need an extra hour of sleep somewhere in the day.
When thinking of all these practical things, a lot of us tend to say “if only I had more money, more time, more energy, more freedom, more confidence to take charge, then I could have what I need”. Whatever it is, perhaps you feel bound by your current circumstances.
It may feel silly, you may not be used to asking for something like this, but I encourage you to pray about it. Ask God for a new appliance. Ask Him to provide financial peace. It may seem impossible for God to answer your request but scripture tells us in Hebrews 11:1 that “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Faith tells us to hope in the very things which seem impossible and believe that God answers them in his way and in his time. Yes, even clothing, finances, your schedule, anything within the home and for your family. Ask God to provide these things regardless of how small and inconsequential you think they might be.
For example, I knew a couple who was in a tight financial situation in their newlywed years. They couldn’t afford to spend anything that was unnecessary. One day, the woman was looking at her table and was wishing she could have a beautiful white lace tablecloth. It was not possible for them at that time so she prayed for it. She asked God to provide a tablecloth. Out of the blue, a friend of hers called her and said she had been decluttering some things and she had a white lace tablecloth that she wanted to give to her. God provided not just any tablecloth, but specifically a white lace one.
This blew me away. My first thought if I want something is to go to Target. What if instead, I ask God for these things? It certainly would foster more of a spirit of gratitude for what I am given.
How beautiful it is that God cares this much about the details of our lives!
5 Truths about God Providing for Our Needs:
In my own journey of learning to ask God for practical needs (along with the spiritual ones), I have come to better understand some aspects of God and his provision in my life. I would like to offer these five points to keep in mind when asking God for practical things:
God tells us to ask him. He specifically says in scripture to ask and you shall receive, knock and the door will open. Vocalize your wants and needs. Talk to him about it even if you feel like it is insignificant. He cares.
God is faithful in providing for our needs. He is giving to us constantly everyday in ways big and small, practical and spiritual. Most of them we tend to overlook. I love reading Genesis 2 with this in mind. Not only does God provide all the necessary things for humanity to thrive but he provides beyond what is necessary because he loves us!
God sometimes makes us wait. The waiting time is very important to developing our faith and trust in Him. He knows the perfect timing and when our hearts are most ready to receive what he has for us. We are in a fast paced society that tends to want to rush things but it’s often in waiting that we learn the most, trust in His timing.
God can do anything. Literally, nothing is impossible with God. We don’t know the ways that he could make something happen for us but he has a way. When we wait for his ways, they are more astounding than if we did it on our own.
God knows best. He knows better than us what we truly need. You may not get what you ask for and it might not make sense to you. But trust His reasons, perhaps you are asking for the things which he knows would not be best for your flourishing or perhaps he has something better. Surrender knowing you have asked and choose to trust his timing and his ways.
Do Not Grow Anxious
Matthew 6:25-30 says this:
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat [or drink], or about your body, what you will wear...Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?...Learn from the way the wildflowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
God sees us, knows us, and loves us. He provides for us in a million detailed ways everyday. The entire story of the Bible from creation through the plan of salvation proclaims this truth. God constantly reminded Israel he would provide for them in their practical needs so long as they remained faithful to him. Through the life of Christ, God provides for our greatest need; salvation from sin but he does not ignore the practical needs of those who believed in him either. He provided wine when it ran out at a wedding, fed 5,000 hungry people, and healed many people of their ailments.
Patience, Gratitude and Hope
Over the past 3 years since getting the house, I have been learning to ask God to provide in practical ways as well as learning to reflect on all the ways he is providing that I often overlook. It is a new way to pray and requires patience. It has helped me grow in a spirit of gratitude for what I have been given and a spirit of hope in how God takes care of my needs.
I hope the same for you! I’d love to hear your stories of practical prayers God has answered in your life! Please share them in the comments!!