Laying Down the Fleece

"Then Gideon said to God, 'Do not be angry with me.  Let me make just one more request.  Allow me one more test with the fleece, but this time make the fleece dry and let the ground be covered with dew.'"  -Judges 6:39

This act by Gideon has come to be known as "laying down the fleece" whenever we want confirmation from God on what we think He wants us to do.  At the beginning of 1987 we wanted to move closer to Ken's work so we put our house on the market, signing a 6-month contract with the realtor.  We'd been in the house six years but had not been able to afford to do much to make it "ours"  so we hoped to find something less expensive in the bargain.  After three months of looking at houses in the new area, however, we could not find one that was even comparable in price and size to what we already had.  We began having second thoughts about moving.  Our house wasn't getting any interest at all from buyers so we could have asked to get out of our contract.  I wanted to be sure, though, this was God's doing and not just my desire to stay put, so I suggested we leave our house on the market and if it did not sell, that would be our confirmation that we were to stay.  The contract ran out and it wasn't long after that Ken's office moved which would have made his frequent trips into the office much longer than it already was if we'd moved.  Eventually he was able to work from home so he didn't even have to make that trip into the office very often.  Thirty years later we are still here.  We've been able to make it fit us so perfectly that we don't see ourselves ever leaving.

I am grateful that when I put my life into God's hands I can trust He will work things out for good.