Will the Door Open?
My granddaughter, Grace, and her boyfriend, Cameron, lived together for seven years before recently marrying. Their best friends, Brent and Lucy, married a year earlier. Brent was Cameron’s best man and Lucy was Grace’s maid of honor. The couples envisioned raising their kids together. The glitch in this plan was that Brent and Lucy lived 90 miles away. Grace and Cameron saved money to buy their dream home in the city where Brent and Lucy lived.
They skimped on their honeymoon in order to preserve their house fund. They lived in a small apartment, didn’t take expensive vacations, and saved by forgoing eating out, going to the movies, and other costly entertainments. Cameron invested their savings. They prequalified for a loan and began to scour the listings, but nothing they saw felt like the right home for them.
One day over lunch, Grace said, “Grandma, everything’s so expensive. We can’t afford to live near Brent and Lucy. Everything we look at is 30-45 minutes away. I think we will have to buy small and then move again in a couple of years. We need a four-bedroom house but we can only find three bedroom houses in our budget. I’m not sure we’ll ever find a house near them in this market.”
“Grace, sounds like you’re willing to settle for less than you’ve been hoping for, less than what you need. Moving twice in a few years? Looking for another house within a few years isn’t practical or cost effective. Don’t settle. Don’t settle. You will know when you see the house that is for you. Jesus promises us that he will provide. God opens doors. I haven’t ever been able to think up a prayer, or know what to even ask for; but God has always provided for me in the strangest ways. God opens the doors, and we walk through the threshold. When you walk through that door, you will know. Wait, Grace…it will happen. Your heart will tell you, and what happens will be beyond what you could have asked for. It will be so far out that you and Cameron will recognize the Lord’s hand in it. God will open the door and all you need to do is walk through. I believe this with all my heart and I am praying that it will happen for you and Cameron.”
Grace smiled at me. “Okay Grandma.”
“Seriously honey, I promise you, the Lord will take care of you.”
I had been praying for a year for God to bless their efforts and I knew God was at work in their lives.The planning of the wedding was miraculous to watch. I could feel God leading them. The love they shared with their family and friends on their wedding day was a joyful celebration. Everyone felt blessed. God, please, please open the door, the door. Open Grace and Cameron’s door.
Five weeks after they were married, my husband, Jerry, and I received a phone call. “When can you come see us? We have something to tell you!” When we arrived at their apartment, the conversation moved back and forth between the two of them. “Guess what?!” They were aglow, beaming from ear to ear as they sat on the couch with their arms entwined. Cameron began, “We were on our way back home from my mom’s house on Sunday, and we got a call from Brent and Lucy. A house had just come on the market in their neighborhood and there was an open house that day. When we got to their house we wanted to drive with them to see it. Lucy said, ‘Oh, you don’t have to drive, it’s seven houses down the street!’ So we walked down the street and couldn’t believe what we saw. We opened the door and walked into an empty house. It had new flooring, a remodeled kitchen, a new roof, and a two-car garage. Grace smiled, “The house is 1500 square feet and it has four bedrooms which we really need. We were surprised to find a small pool in the backyard! We immediately fell in love with it.” Cameron’s mother is a mortgage broker in the area. “I called my mom and she found us a trusted and experienced realtor. We submitted an offer within two days!” Grace continued, “And then we wrote a letter to the owner telling them how much we loved the house, that our best friends lived seven houses down the street, and that we wanted to start a family there.” Cameron said, “I don’t know if our offer was as much as they wanted but they accepted it. Escrow closes in 17 days.”
They were giddy with awe and excitement. Their happiness spilled into our hearts. We are thrilled for them as they adventure into the next phase of family life.