Earlier this morning I was reading through my journal and
came across an entry dated February 6, 2015.
Matt Gager had been visiting us in Pretoria just days before we were
getting ready to move to Mossel Bay. At
this time, he was praying and seeking the Lord as to whether or not his family
should move to South Africa. During his
morning time with the Lord the day prior, he said the Lord told him He was
going to give us land. Well, here we are
today in the middle of negotiating the purchase of a large piece of land in an
area called “8 Bells”. As you may have
read in my previous post, we have been praying that the owner would agree to a
lease-to-own contract because we don’t have the funds to purchase it right now. The owner is fine with this and allowing his
lawyer and the agency to work out the details as they see fit. To give you a little background to the
story………
When we were sent back to the States to obtain our visas, we
still honored our rental agreement even though we weren’t going to be living in
the house for 2 months. We had paid
through the end of May but needed to make another payment by June 1st. Through many roadblocks, I was finally able
to successfully get the funds from the US to South Africa. However, long story short, the agency had
troubles withdrawing the funds so the agency owner, Stevie, came to our house shortly
after our return to try and sort things out.
At this point, our landlord even wanted us to be forced to vacate the
premises because he thought we were in breach of our contract, but the agency
backed us up and said we paid our rent on time and that the problem was on
their end. It took almost 3 weeks for
them to finally secure the funds. During
that time, Josh so happened to mention that we were in search of some
land. It turns out that Stevie knew of
someone that owned a large piece of land and would be interested in selling it
if offered the full amount of R3.5 million (rand). This is the equivalent of roughly $288,000
(excluding tax of 14%). He left our home
and then brought back some pictures on a thumb drive so we could see the
place. Based on the pictures, our
interest was definitely peaked. A few
days later we were at the property and blown away by its beauty and the
layout. We all had peace about pursuing
the land, and Matt sensed the Lord saying, “It is ours.” The catch was someone currently lived in the
house and hadn’t given their notice. We
continued to voice our interest to Stevie, and Josh even met with the current
tenant to see what his plans were. It
turns out he had given his notice to leave by the end of August. How timely for us, as our current lease ends
August 31st. What’s incredible is that the property was
NEVER on the market to sell! Stevie
just so happens to be good friends with the owner of the property, believes in
the Lord and sees our heart in all of this.
God took the situation with our struggles to make our rent payment and
used it for good by connecting us with Stevie ‘cause that’s just what He does!! If the owner agrees to our terms, we will be
required to make a 10% down payment by August 31st to secure the
land, which we believe will be roughly $40,000 (including some tax).
The owner of the property is also willing to sell his truck
to us, but as of now we’re holding off because the asking price is too high –
roughly $28,000. We think we might be
able to obtain a used truck and larger vehicle to transport all of us for hopefully
around that same price. God has been
good to us with our current vehicle, as we’ve been able to keep it for longer
than expected, but it definitely won’t make it on the farm. This is another need we are in prayer for – a
truck for working on the farm and transporting things such as equipment,
fertilizer, etc., and a vehicle that can seat all of us or more children as
needed.
Josh and Matt met with the property owner’s lawyer on Monday
to discuss details, and that is when we found out someone else is interested in
purchasing the property. In fact, this
person originally owned the property and then sold it and now wants to buy it
back. Stevie has clearly communicated to
the lawyer that he wants us to have first dibs.
Favor!! Today Josh and Matt met
with an accountant to discuss tax laws and figure out the best way to funnel
the funds, etc. It turns out that the
accountant goes to the church we’ve been attending.
Now, you may wonder….
Where are a bunch of unemployed missionaries going to get this kind of
money? That’s a good question. Our answer….
We have the best employer one could ask for – God!! Josh and I know that He sent us here. We know that He told us to pursue land and
start a garden to feed people. We know
He has promised us land. We know He is a
faithful Daddy that will provide in impossible situations. If He wants us to have this land, He will
provide all that we need for it as we continue to follow His lead.
We would appreciate your prayers and covering that no spirit
of doubt or fear would steal from our peace and joy as we step out in faith and
pursue His heart. If the Lord is leading
you to help provide financial support in what He’s doing through us in South
Africa, you can submit a tax-deductible donation on our Web site at www.four18.org.
We have been told that a contract should be drawn up by the
end of this week so we will keep you all updated as things transpire. Thank you for joining us in prayer and
believing with us for this land! The
Lord has declared it will be a place of hope and restoration!
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