Growing Faith

Just short of 5 months ago I began the journey of becoming a first time home owner. (You can read the first "chapter" of my journey here.) 12 days ago I signed the initial contract on the house that I thought was the answer to those prayers but I learned today that the adorable brick bungalow off of 35th and Fillmore was only one chapter in the yet unfinished story (humanly speaking). The Lord has a far better story already written and he is slowing revealing His goodness to me each step of the way.

When I got the call about the termination of the contract today my first response was to smile at how the Lord is just including this to the list of faith building circumstances in life as of late. Below is the story I told to a friend just 3 days ago. I see now an even greater part of God's plan for this past weekend...

Hey Shannon,

I just wanted to share a blessing with you as the time for our trip to Haiti is so quickly approaching. I left for a friend's wedding last Thursday and while driving from Philadelphia to northern New Jersey , about 30 min from our final destination, the wheel (in it's entirety) flew off our car, across 4 lanes of traffic, and into someone on the other side of the highway's windshield. No one was injured, praise the Lord, but our vehicle was out of commission so after the weekend of wedding activities and such we had to find another way to travel the 3 hours back to PA on Sunday. We took a bus from NY to a station near Philly which was close to the home of a girl my sister is working with for the summer who happened to be driving the 1 hour difference back to my sister's camp this evening. We were able to spend some time with this friend's family before leaving for the last leg of the trip and my trip to Haiti came up in the last 5 min as we were leaving. So that's part 1 of the story.

Part 2 before the huge faith increasing ending is this: as I was leaving for this trip a plumber was running a sewer scope on the house I am pursuing buying. Long story short there were several complications over the next 3 days and the result was the very near possibility of losing my contract on the house. Faith testing! I've been saying (and believing) that God wants me to invest financially and thereby emotionally in this particular property EVEN IF the end result is not me obtaining the property but at the first sight of that happening I began questioning the Lord. Yesterday was really rough but with some extra pleas to the Lord and Godly support I was back to trusting and out of my sinful worry in no time.
So about 30 min ago I hugged Melissa's parents and thanked them for their hospitality in inviting us to eat with them today and she snuck me some money for the trip. This family I had known for less than 1 hour gave $500 toward the mission in Haiti. I got to the car and saw how much they had given and immediately cried tears of gratefulness to the Lord for His personal love for me. My faith is constantly renewed in the One who does above and beyond what I could ask or think. He ordained good things for me, including a broken vehicle. He already had laid on the hearts of these strangers to me to give. I'm overjoyed and thrilled about the many ways God will keep increasing my faith through the trip and ultimately until my faith is made whole at the sight of this great God!

Rejoicing anew,
~Alyssa

Today I am rejoicing that the Lord revealed my little faith when He allowed me the great privilege of my recent "trial" with the house and it's inspection problems.

Today I am rejoicing that the Lord produced a stronger faith in me than what I knew even this morning.

Today I am anticipating the great faith that the Lord is already working out in my life.