Today, I am left with no doubts. We are supposed to move to Grafton; God has chosen this path for
us, and has shown us, without doubt, that it is where we are meant to be. We have known for some time that were to
move on, and for the past few months, Grafton has become the obvious choice –
we tried Dubbo, Wagga, Adelaide, and other centres, but each time, the doors
firmly closed, leaving us frustrated and confused. But in Grafton, the doors swung open.
Firstly, the job. We
arrived in Grafton for our ‘holiday’, the Thursday before our annual homeschool
camp. Dear hubby, Bill, looked online
for work, and found a job he thought he’d apply for. He sent through his application on Saturday, had an interview on
Monday, and was offered a weeks’ trial straight away. Now, he has not started in that work as yet – due to lack of
rain, current work opportunities are minimal (it’s at a lawn mower workshop),
but he has been told once, and then again this week, he is at the top of their
list, their employee of choice, and once the rain arrives, the job will be
his. And even if it doesn’t work out,
Bill has a great sense of peace that there is a job waiting for him, and it
will come at just the right time.
Next, the house.
With work looking promising, the hunt for a house began. We applied for several, and were knocked
back. But all along, we knew that if
possible, we did not want to go through a real estate agent. So, we put up signs, and put an ad in the
paper. On the very morning we were
leaving to come home, we received a text message about a house just 10 minutes
from Grafton. The house contained 4
bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and overlooked the river. We went to inspect it, and both Bill and myself felt such a sense
of peace in the house, that we knew, despite the fact it was a much smaller
house than what we have now, that it was ‘the one’. It was also private rental, so no real estate agent, and was
around $100 per week cheaper than any other house we had looked at. Perfect!
And, after spending hour after hour filling out forms to apply for
rentals, providing identification, proof of income, etc. etc., this house was
offered to us on the spot – no application forms required – it was just .. easy.
But as if that wasn’t enough, after being knocked back for
so many other houses, it was as if God said, ‘and just to show you I mean it –
here are three other houses for you’.
Yep, one was through a real estate agent, and two others were offered to
us because of our ads in windows. So in
the end, we would have had a house, whether that be through the real estate
agent, the signs in the windows, or the ad in the paper.
Anyway, we returned home to begin the packing. The whole ‘removal truck’ thing concerned
me, for we currently live in a rather rural location, and I wasn’t sure how to
go about finding a suitable removal company.
One email later, I had a company willing to do it for us, and they so
happened to have a truck coming through our area two days later, who would deliver
the boxes. We were on our way!
But you know, it seems that whenever God is doing something
great in people’s lives, the devil is there, willing to do whatever it takes to
prevent it. And he has tried. Some people began to spread lies
and vicious rumours. With great sadness, I told my parents and
close friends the news, and the next visit to my parents turned out to be one
of the most difficult days of my life.
They had both sunk into depression, and I left the homes terrified that
one (or both) of them had given up on life, and were now simply waiting to
die. With the stress of it all, I
collapsed, and nearly ended up in hospital.
My health has suffered greatly, and in the end, I was simply unable to
move on the date we had set for the removal truck. But, we packed anyway.
And my husband headed north with the truck, leaving the rest of us here
to finish the packing, cleaning and sorting.
Some wonderful friends then stepped in to help, although, they
said, it would be with sad faces, as they would greatly miss us. In the end, we had two families helping us
out. But in the two weeks that have
followed, one family hit a kangaroo and totalled their car, leaving them unable
to help, and the second family were rear-ended, leaving them also without a
vehicle. And so, we were back to just
the children and I to complete the task.
But, it doesn’t stop there.
First came the near accident that I wrote about in a previous post,
where we nearly wiped out the bus (and ourselves). A miracle of God saved us that day, and more were to come. Earlier this week, we were driving along
with my son at the wheel, when another driver turned without looking at a
t-junction and nearly hit us. My son
handled it beautifully, swerving quickly to the left, and going out and around
the shocked driver, who suddenly became aware of our presence as we darted
around the front of his vehicle. But
the most powerful sign was today. On
the way back from Port Pirie, I took the wheel as my learner driver was feeling
rather tired. We were travelling along
a straight stretch of road, when I looked up to see a taxi driving towards
us. Slowly and gradually, the taxi
started to drift, and suddenly I realised, the driver was asleep at the wheel,
and his vehicle was headed straight for us!
I slammed on the brakes and pulled off to the side of the road, but
still he was drifting in our direction.
My son braced himself to rip the wheel out of my hands and take us
further to the left, when suddenly, the driver straightened up and yanked the
wheel to take him back to his own side of the road. As he scooted past, we came to a complete stop – but he didn’t,
and casually kept going down the road (thanks a lot!).
And with great trials come great graces. On Sunday, we were privileged and blessed to
be able to attend the Port Pirie Cathedral for Mass and veneration of the right
arm of St. Francis Xavier. For an hour,
we knelt in prayer, as well as praying before the relic itself. It was a powerful morning, to be sure, and I
left with a sense of peace and purpose I had not felt for weeks. I knew God was about to do some marvellous
works in our family, and all we needed to do was just keep going. And he has.
Over the past fortnight, He has shown us marvellous works, protected us,
and taught us powerful lessons in trust.
He has shown us things that normally we would not see; let us know some
of what awaits us in Grafton, and shown us perhaps a little of the
unexpected. .
And now I realise.
Situation after situation, disaster after disaster, and there is no
doubt. We are supposed to go to
Grafton. There are those who oppose it,
and those who are definitely making things
difficult for our journey. But there are others who have encouraged us, held my hand, and threw their arms around me. Some have helped us here, and others and have supported us across the miles. And I have learned the true value of friendship, and who our true friends are. After today, I am left with no doubt. Our family will be in Grafton, and we will
arrive with joy and thankfulness, and no-one, not even the devil, is able to
stop it, because we have God on our side.
He is the one who has chosen this path for us, and we will follow
wherever He leads.
May God bless you day,
Linda.
4 comments:
Good God in Heaven! May He, and His Guardian Angels, continue to protect you all.
I'm feeling quite misty eyed after reading of your travails and am just so sorry that I haven't been able to physcially help you - I will continue to hold you all in my prayers and very much look forward to hearing all the wonderful positive stories that I just know are going to come out once you are safely over there and settled in.
God bless you all.
Will be praying for a safe and uneventful trip over here for you! Lovely to catch up with Bill at the concert on Saturday.
I'm horrified to hear people have been mean to you, but Praise the Lord for His direction and surety in a difficult time. I'll keep you and your family in my prayers.
Thankyou all. It has been an amazing few weeks - complete with sadness, frustration, and sorrow, and yet, it has brought us much closer together, and to God, and given us a greater sense of family and purpose.
Certainly a learning curve, to be sure!
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