Aspects of Fighting the Good Fight of Faith, Part 4

[saint701]

Hello Christianity Oasis, All...

Blessings!!!

Part 4. Faith, Patience and Longsuffering

Heb.11
[1] Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Rom.12
[12] Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

Jas.1
[3] Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
[4] But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

Eph.4
[2] With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

One might expect such a one as myself, after suffering through all hell, to throw up the hands and say, "I quit!!" But I didn't! I actually became more determined than ever to press on in my persuit of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Though still suffering much several weeks after the initial attack by the devil, I sat down, grabbed pen and paper, and wrote out a long prayer. It was nearing the end of the school year and we were facing homelessness. I asked my wife to join me in agreement on our knees before the Lord as I described in detail by detail the house and acreage I desired for my family. Then a strange thing happened, a long dormant house plant in the corner of our bedroom popped one green bud. I praise God for that! Hallelujah!!!

Summer came and we were out on our ears so to speak...but we had some things to our advantage. For one thing we had a large 1991 B250 Dodge Conversion Van fully equipped for a long journey. We stored our furniture in the garage of my Aunt Imo's house, purchased some camping equipment including a large storage bin I could clamp down on the roof of our van and we were ready to hit the road. Fist stop, a KOA Camp just outside Lebanon, MO. There I bought a season KOA pass that would allow us to stay at one of their many nice camping areas wherever we traveled for just $10.00 a night.

My mother had settled in nicely with her Sister Imo, my mom in her early 70s, and Aunt IMO 81...but I had noticed something strange about Imo. While on a visit there, we sat outside on her sidewalk one early afternoon and she asked me how we were doing and I said we were fine. Nothing strange there, right? But then she asked me the same question 10 minutes later...that shocked me. It was her first sign of dementia! I knew that at some point on down the road we would have that family matter to deal with. But that time wasn't yet...pressing at the time was the issue of homelessness and how to deal with it.

I decided to flip a proverbial flying bird of paradise right up the devil's nose...we were off to Virginia Beach, VA to visit Pat Robertson and the 700 Club and spend some time at the famous beach there before heading on southward to Disney World! We had fun!!

As the summer came to an end my wife and kids were off to visit her folks for a while...I rented a motel room to spend time in fasting and prayer...my Aunt Imo problem was becoming increasingly worse...my mother was at her wits end...we were still homeless...the start of the new school year was just around the corner...we were still unemployed...but glory to God He came through for us...I found a 2 story 5 bedroom home to rent...my wife was hired as an aide for a Special Education Teacher...I sub-taught, and it wasn't long before we brought my mother and her sister Imo in to live with us...I was granted legal custody of my failing aunt...4 bedrooms filled...the remaining bedroom became the kids play room. Sweet!!! Some didn't think so, but considering all we had been through, it was the greatest thing for our Wonderful Heavenly Father to show us His great mercy and grace.!!

Toward the end of the following summer our landlord decided to to raise our rent $200.00...I decided that if we were going to pay that much for rent we might as well buy a house, and the one we settled on was exactly the one my wife and I had prayed for 18 months earlier and then some because our GOD IS MORE THAN ENOUGH...4 bedrooms, 2 baths, fenced yard, basketball court, spacious backyard for whiffle ball, a garden spot, a patio with
an overhang and BBQ pit, a 2 car garage with a 3 car canopy, 80 by 80 yard fence and an 80 yard paved driveway...we finally had a home thanks to our good Lord. Thank you Father!!


Blessings!
Love, in Christ Jesus, Saint701.