My heart dropped when I was told by a very nice lady that they didn't do transfers, that their policy was to cut a check and mail it. Then she said that since it was after 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, the request wouldn't go in until the next day-- Friday.
Okay, I thought to myself. The check will still have time to get here by Tuesday.
Then she said that I could expect the check in five to ten business days.
Breathe, Donna. This can't be happening.
Then I learned that Monday was a holiday, and the banks and post office would be closed.
There was no way that check could get here by Tuesday. And I still had to go to the bank to deposit it, and then get a money order because the bank wouldn't be open before our closing Wednesday morning, which took place in a nearby town.
By this time I started panicking. I tried to think of someone I could borrow the money from until the check arrived, but most of the people I knew didn't have that amount of discretionary money sitting around. I thought about my son who was stationed overseas, but by the time he got the message and contacted his bank, they weren't able to make the transaction in time either. Over the weekend a dear friend in Houston offered to loan me the money, but I hated for her to go to all that trouble, and it would mean a drive over there because the post office wouldn't be able to deliver it in time since they were closed on Monday. And I had to work on Monday.
And then it dawned on me that even if the check did arrive on time, banks often required three to five days to clear the check before the funds could be withdrawn. It looked hopeless.
I had no doubt that we were supposed to buy this house. Some extraordinary events happened in that process. I came to town one day to see a larger home we were considering buying, but I'd also seen this cute, cottage-looking house online that was too small for us to buy, but I wanted my realtor to walk me through it because it had a big porch on the front, and I loved porches. Then when I first walked through it, I just knew it was the house we were supposed to buy. But before my parents could get up here to see it, the house sold.
I couldn't get it off my mind, though, and I asked my realtor to keep me posted about the house. She told me it was a done deal, that the listing was already taken off the Web. But then a couple of weeks later she called me and said, "You're not going to believe this, but the house is back on the market. The buyers' financing fell through, but they're still looking to finance through some other means, so there's a small window of opportunity here." My parents immediately came up and looked at the house, and in three days, we had an offer on the table, and it was accepted.
My house had sold in nine days, and at that time I was living temporarily with my daughter and her family until my parents and I found this house to buy. Now it was time to close on our dream home, and my mistake put the transaction in jeopardy. I remember lying in bed with my face to the wall with no solution coming to mind, and all I could say to God was, "I'm so sorry I messed up, but I trust You. I trust You. I trust You."
On Tuesday I went to the post office on my lunch break, and I pulled out an envelope with no return address. I first thought it was junk mail and almost threw it away, but I decided to open it up and was shocked to find a check for $20,000 dollars. I stared at it, amazed that it had arrived in time. But then I remembered that the bank would have to wait until it cleared before they released the funds.
I took the check to my bank to deposit it, and I asked the teller how long I needed to wait until I was able to get a money order I needed to close on our house. She looked at it and said I could get it right now. I figured she misunderstood me, so I asked her again how long I needed to wait until the check cleared, and she said very nicely again that I could get it right now. I asked her how that could be, and she showed me the check and said that this out of state company just happened to use the same bank as mine, and because of that, they didn't have to hold the funds for a period of time like they would for any other check on any other bank.
I stood there in shock. And then I started laughing out loud. They probably thought I'd gone crazy there for a minute, so I told the tellers what had just happened-- that God had done the impossible. I had the money order in hand the next morning when we closed on the house.
I pull that story out of my head every so often to remind myself that God is still a God of miracles, and that when I can see no way out of a situation or no solution to a problem, that He can still overcome any obstacle, even those times when it's my mistake. That doesn't mean my life has been problem-free, and I've been given plenty of difficulties to learn from, but I'm so grateful for those moments He's showered his grace on me in a miraculous way. Amazing.
Family picture taken on the porch of our new home
Thanksgiving 2008
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