Our Humble Abode (Part 1)

Yes, this is a real rough sketch of our new place. At this point Kel is still fluttering with excitment. I am excied too, but sometimes way too bogged down by the paperworks, sourcing of tradesmen etc. But still we're are having heaps of fun, with endless chatters on color schemes, featured walls, types of flooring and many more. So to hold the suspense here a little, we won't post up any pictures yet until we complete our little reno venture :)

Finally, our very own place. Many things to really thank God for ...

• Location - we have been praying for a place right where ministry is, and here we are, the very heart of St Lucia


• Good and fair selling agent - throughout the whole house search, we have been rejected so many times because of the highly competitive market, basically no way of negotiation and always forcing us to raise our buying price! But we met this one who is still doing it in a fair and just way, allowing us to negotiate with seller, and not allowing competition to force us to increase our price. So we got it at a good price!


• Finances - we had 1 month from contract to settlement, in which we had hiccups here and there, 1st home application, Visa issues etc to just name a few. But God brought so much miracles like some important document that turned up in our letterbox on a Saturday morning, 5 mins after we sort of 'fretted' over it. He immediately brought assurance. How cool is that


• Perfect timing - there are current tenants there which is great because our current lease is till January. So no paying empty rent and we can even earn some extra rent income from the tenants!


• Friendly tenants who one of them happens to be Kel's Sec Sch friend sister! So asking to enter to do quotations, measurements etc is so easy!


• Generous parents who have helped us such a great deal with our finances


• Not to mention, the nice sized apartment, with all our prayers answered ... nitty gritties like laundry in the house, extra bathroom, balcony. There's even a bonus extra extension on the balcony that has a small plot of soil that we can plant our endless herbs and tomato, chilli plants! Can't wait. Tomato man will be back in action soon

We really can't wait to be back in St Lucia. One thing that really got us excited before we got married was to be able to have a place open and easily accessible for people to come. We have always imagined shepherdings and discipleship happening in the hall, the rooms ... All these are happening :)

Is packaging that important to you?

I just read this story online, and though it's not the 1st time, it still brought about timely reminders for myself to learn to be contented in God especially in that desire for earthly possessions! Enjoy.

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold. Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, "With all your money you give me a Bible?" He then stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible.Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and a wonderful family, but realizing his father was very old, he thought perhaps he should go to see him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make the arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things.When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. As he was reading, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words..."PAID IN FULL".How many times do we miss blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.

newFACEbook

For once, my inbox today wasn't flooded by feeds from facebook. Still i was drawn to just click onto the site just to buzz around and check out for newest updates. What a change from just what seems like a couple of weeks ago, not a clue on what is happening. I think i am 'sucked' into the techy world ..... converted :)