God's Path is Always Perfect by Ingrid
Ingrid lives in Minneapolis with her husband, Dan, and their three silly boys. She blogs at reachingHISkids and has a passion for sharing Jesus and fighting poverty. After earning a degree in cross cultural and urban ministry from Moody Bible Institute, God led Ingrid to the inner-city. For 15 years, she has been intentionally reaching her neighbors for Jesus. In 2010, the story of an Ethiopian widow, inspired her to travel to Ethiopia. She is working with Children’s Hope Chest as a sponsorship coordinator and has the privilege of serving and helping 200 orphaned and vulnerable children. However, she believes the bottom line of fighting poverty is about changing her own heart. James 1:27, “…keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” You can follow Ingrid on Facebook and Twitter.
This past October we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. Our whole marriage we have lived in the same house. It’s a 109 year old Victorian that’s full of charm. As
a matter of fact, my husband bought our home 4 years before we ever
met. It was a fixer-upper that he rented right out of college and
eventually bought from his landlord.
Initially, we considered this house a starter home and thought we would live here a maximum of 5 years.
Around the time we hit the 5 year mark we considered moving but instead
had an opportunity to purchase a second property. It was a single
family home just a few blocks away. With the housing costs at that time
we got a great deal but what we didn’t foresee was that during the next
year the housing market was going to take a turn south. Within a couple years the value of our rental and our home had significantly declined. On top of it, becoming landlords had been much harder than we expected and long story short, our finances took a huge hit.
For
a few years we really struggled financially, it was hard to find
consistent tenants, and our hopes of moving into a different home, began
to wane. If I’m honest with
myself, there were many days when I was angry as I was feeling more and
more crowded in our home with the birth of baby #3 and our boys getting
bigger. We thought we wanted a “better” neighborhood. We hadn’t intended to stay in this home but you know what, God did.
I believe that God used the purchase of that 2nd property and the decline of the housing market to keep us right where He wanted us to be. The truth is found in Proverbs 20:24,
“A man's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way?"
There were a few years of “pain” in the form of financial difficulties and frustration but God definitely had purpose in it.
Over the years, we have tried to be “a good neighbor” to those around us. We
live in the inner-city, a very diverse neighborhood with its share of
issues including poverty, crime and many pitfalls that youth must avoid
to have a chance at life. I’ve always loved children and over the years children have found their way to our home. We’ve loved them, baked them cookies, shared the truth of Jesus, brought them to church and loved their families. It’s been in the past 5 years that we have seen the most fruit. I’ve often thought about the “what ifs”. What if we hadn’t bought that 2nd property, dealt with the pain
of being in a place we didn’t want to be or walked away because we just wanted to move? I’m thankful that God’s plans trump ours, if we are seeking His will in our lives.
In
January 2011, I took a life changing trip to Ethiopia. As I drove
through the countryside, I remember praying about my neighbor kids. The poverty I had seen in my neighborhood was nothing compared to rural Ethiopia. I
realized I needed to help the children around me understand what a
privilege they had to live in America and receive an education. An
education is crucial to ensuring a self-sufficient future. One neighbor
really took my words to heart. Today he is 17, studying hard and doing
great in High School. In just 2 months he will travel to Ethiopia with
me to fulfill James 1:27. I’m thankful that God kept us in our home, allowed us to be his neighbor and is using us to impact his
life.
Are you in a place today that you don’t want to be? Maybe in a job or housing situation that isn’t your ideal? If you are trusting God and seeking His will, consider that His plans are perfect. Trust God to fulfill His purpose in your life.
About the Author: Ingrid
Ingrid lives in Minneapolis with her husband, Dan, and their three silly boys. She blogs at reachingHISkids and has a passion for sharing Jesus and fighting poverty. After earning a degree in cross cultural and urban ministry from Moody Bible Institute, God led Ingrid to the inner-city. For 15 years, she has been intentionally reaching her neighbors for Jesus. In 2010, the story of an Ethiopian widow, inspired her to travel to Ethiopia. She is working with Children’s Hope Chest as a sponsorship coordinator and has the privilege of serving and helping 200 orphaned and vulnerable children. However, she believes the bottom line of fighting poverty is about changing her own heart. James 1:27, “…keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” You can follow Ingrid on Facebook and Twitter.
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