Out of the blue my best friend texted me and it read, “I truly believe that God is going to show up for you in a mighty way in this season EVEN during a pandemic because that’s just how awesome He is.” We don’t talk every day, but when we do it’s always a blessing. With that being said, I hadn’t told her much of anything that was going on with me “in this season”. As a matter of fact, only a few people know what I’ve been dealing with since 2018.
The fact is that I gave up my job and everything to move closer to family and get myself out of the mess that I was in. My kids and I ended up becoming homeless in August of 2019. We slept wherever we could, including in the car before I was able to get us checked into an extended stay. For seven long months the four of us were in one room together sharing a bathroom. At one point, even my oldest son was there in a sleeping bag. Honestly, we were never closer as a family than in the time we spent in that room. It was expensive though, and I could barely afford it. I just kept praying, praising God, and trusting that He would make a way somehow. I can remember not having the money for the cost of the room many times, and then receiving random cash app transfers from friends and family. For months I was keeping us in the hotel while working reduced hours. As soon as my employer allowed it, I began to work as many extra hours as I could stand. I hardly had time for anything else as I worked seven days a week between my single-mom duties.
My goal was to get my family out of that room as soon as possible. I applied for a rental house that my kids and I absolutely loved. The blue house. Though my application was denied, I would not let the feeling of defeat set in. I came across a private owner who had just listed a home for rent. When she didn’t reply the first time, I messaged her again a week later. She finally replied. Let me tell you about favor. My daughter and I went to view the property and meet the owner. She turned out to be a pastor. She told me how she was drawn to my message of all of others she’d received. She showed me the messages, and she was scrolling for quite a while. Somehow, my messages didn’t get lost in the sea of messages that she had. She told me that many people had reached out to her, but I was the only one she had invited to come to the house to view it. Perhaps it was what I said in my message, but she knew before I came that she was going to rent to me. At the same time COVID-19 was causing businesses to close. Believing that God hadn’t brought me that far to leave me, I moved at a time when there was so much chaos around me. I had an unexplainable peace while everyone else was running around in a panic looking for toilet paper and cleaning supplies. We went from staying in a room not quite the size of your master bedroom to over seven-teen hundred square feet of house. We have so much space now that we don’t know what to do with it all.
During that time, I hardly spoke to my family. Imagine going months without speaking to people you’re used to communicating with on an everyday basis. I could have easily fallen into depression or given up just on that alone. But God, He wouldn’t let it be so. I kept praying for the restoration of those relationships. Thing is, it came at the most unexpected time — at the start of a pandemic. See the same day that my new landlord called me to set up a time to get the keys, my job was transitioning us from on-site to work at home. However, I was still in the hotel room and couldn’t work from there. Because of the need to have a place to work from, my family and I would put away our differences and pull together. God answered my prayers and brought reconciliation to my family.
Now when I first moved, I took a job that didn’t pay as much as I ideally would have wanted to be earning. That’s an understatement, too. I remember someone asking me why I took the position. My answer was simply, “I’m going to work to become a manager.” It wasn’t always easy to concentrate on that goal, but I prayed about it and left it in God’s hands. I applied once and wasn’t selected. With everything else that was going on, the thought just fell by the wayside. It was at a time when I really wasn’t expecting it that a position became available and I was considered. I said, “Lord, you know the plans you have for me. I’m here for it!” Before I could totally grasp what was happening, I had gotten a promotion. His timing was perfect!
….even the winds and the waves obey Him! ~ Matthew 8:27
The truth is that storms will come and go. It’s not about the storm itself so much as it is about your faith and attitude while riding it out. This includes COVID-19. My heart goes out to those adversely affected by this pandemic. I pray that God give you peace and comfort during this time. As for me, He continues to be my provider and has proven to be my restorer and promoter. Whoever I need Him to be, He is. God has done more than just keep me in the midst of this storm. I am grateful beyond words. I will continue to pray, have faith, trust Him, and praise Him no matter what. So yes, Bestie, my God is awesome!
Great.testimony. Love you all.