Recently it appeared my prayers had failed. I was devastated! But even if God didn't answer my prayers on this subject, I was determined to hold onto my faith in God.
"Though HE (God) slay me, yet will I trust in HIM." (Job 13:15)
This is a report of this story of holding onto God even when it seems we have failed.
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April 18, 2020 ... Story of what seemed to be a failure in prayer ...
Prayers over my house in Texas which has been on the real estate market since January 2019
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Open vision from God concerning Texas house received in approximately March, 2019.
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Prayer during the peak time of the Coronavirus:
Prayer in March, 2020 ... "To God: Is there anything you want me to change concerning the sale of the house in Texas during this Coronavirus?"
Prayer in March, 2020 ... "To God: Is there anything you want me to change concerning the sale of the house in Texas during this Coronavirus?"
I very earnestly sought God in prayer. And I felt God showed me to put a "sale price" on the house, lowering the price of the house for 1 week."
I did this immediately.
It was the peak of the time of the Coronavirus in the United States.
I contacted our realtor and told her to lower the price by $50,000 immediately. (This was approximately March 29, 2020)
She did that and in two days we received an offer on the house which had not sold since my accident on December 6, 2018.
The buyers were moving from Colorado to Lubbock, Texas, to teach at Texas Tech University.
(I had moved from Texas to Colorado on February 24, 2019, the day I was released from the rehabilitation hospital in Lubbock, Texas, after my accident.)
We accepted the offer on the house.
The married couple had 10 days to back out of the offer.
On the 10th day, they asked us to give them a 3 day extension, which we did.
At the end of the extension, they asked for a second extension of 24 hours which we did not grant.
They then backed out of the offer.
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Our realtors quit the following day after we failed to grant the requested extension, saying, "We think the time has come to part ways with you."
This happened on the morning of April 15, 2020
Wes Graham, a realtor friend in New Mexico, reported the following to me the same morning our realtor quit us.
Wes said (by email): "I awoke at 3 a.m. last night ... and "something" said, "The agent is working against Joan." (the woman real estate agent in Lubbock)
I prayed and laid back down and I had a clear message: "Joan must change realtors."
Thankfully, Wes reported this to me that morning after he heard this.
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I went through serious problem examining my prayer and my faith in God.
If we pray according to the will of God our prayer will be answered:
I John 5:13-14 And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, HE heareth us:
And if we know that HE hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.
And if we know that HE hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.
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I went through about 2 days of "depression", feeling my prayers concerning the Texas house were denied by God.
"What had I done wrong? (in prayer)" I questioned to God.
My prayer was not answered, it seemed.
And then I felt the following:
I felt I had no business speaking to the church about prayer or about following the Holy Spirit when I couldn't even get my prayer answered concerning that house in Texas.
I just sat in my room and did nothing.
* By HIS Spirit, God reminded me of how HE saved me in 1975.
* Then God reminded me of how HE had transported me into heaven after I was saved in 1975.
I was transported into heaven in the night while I was sleeeping. I was "merged" into the body of Jesus, made one with the Word of God, with God and the Holy Spirit witnessing. (And a few nights after this first happening, the same thing happened a second time in 1975.)
* And I reviewed those things God had taught me concerning the Holy Spirit since 1975, and how I still believed those things, even if my own prayers concerning this house in Texas had not been answered.
Where then did my faith in God stand?
I decided to hold onto those things God had taught me, as Job held on when HE said:
"Though HE slay me, yet will I trust in Him." (Job 13:15)
But I felt I had no business trying to speak about prayer when I couldn't get my own prayer answered.
I didn't pray for these people to buy the house but I had prayed that they wouldn't get "cold feet" concerning the house.
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I decided I would not write on blog nor would I record Podcasts.
But that same morning, I agreed with God to broadcast one more Podcast, entitled, "Following God by HIS Spirit" (Broadcast on 4/16/20)
I knew what God had taught me about the Holy Spirit and how to follow HIM by HIS Spirit was correct teaching.
John 14:26 Jesus says ... But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
John 16:13 Jesus says: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
I Corinthians 2
9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
John 14:26 Jesus says ... But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
John 16:13 Jesus says: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
I Corinthians 2
9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
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April 15, 2020
After our relators quit, we hired another realtor in Lubbock, Texas. He got the house listed again on MLS.
This time we raised the price of the house by $7,000, because we had learned of additional expenses we would have to incur in selling that house. Through the previous offer, they hired an inspector and we had his report and saw the things we needed to do to the house. Also we knew we had to pay for survey which we had not known about, and we would also have to pay for waranty as required by buyer. So we raised the price of the house to cover these expenses.
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Four days after the previous buyers cancelled the offer on the house, these buyers returned, wanting to purchase the house, only now the price of the house was $7,000 higher!
We explained what had happened. The sale price which they had before was only for 1 week. They had tied up the house for 2 weeks before backing out of the offer.
And because of their inspection and the additional expenses, we raised the price of the house and it would now cost them $7,000 more than the original sale price.
Upon the recommendation of my realtor friend in Clovis, New Mexico, we gave these buyers 5 hours to accept the new "higher" price on the house.
They accepted the higher price and bought the house, setting a closing date of May 15, 2020.
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Not only had my prayer been answered, but an open vision which I had received from God in approximately March, 2019, had been fulfilled.
The open vision: March, 2019
God often gives me a word of knowledge (spiritual gift: I Corinthians 12:8) by showing me a vision of that which is going to happen.
This is similar to the vision given by God to both Cornelius and to Peter reported as follows:
Acts 10
3 He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
4 And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord?
And he (the angel) said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God. 5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter: 6 He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.
7 And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
8 And when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.
9 On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour: 10 And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending upon him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
12 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
15 And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
16 This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.
17 Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made enquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate,
18 And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.
19 While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.
20 Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.
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My vision of March, 2019:
In this vision, I saw a man driving down the street on the north side of the Texas house. The man looked at the house and drove past the house. Then this man stopped, backed up, and sat at the north side of my house staring at the house.
I felt God was showing me there would be someone who considered buying my house but passed up on the house ... but he couldn't let the house go ... he backed up and looked again.
I felt in April 2020, this is exactly what happened. They made an offer, then backed out of the offer, then came back again and made a second offer, even though that house was $7,000 more.
The buyers took the house at the new "higher" price.
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My prayer had been answered, though at first it seemed it had not been answered.
And that vision which I believed to be from God concerning my Texas house had happened just as I had been shown it would happen.
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Sometimes we just have to have faith in God in spite of that which appears to be happening contrary to our prayers.
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