About a year ago, Adam and I were visiting one of our local friends. Sitting around on his floor, we began discussing building materials, a topic of great interest to us as we were considering and praying about how to build a house. Looking down at his slatted wooden floor, I admired the quality of the wood. When I commented on how nice it was, he explained that it was made of the good hardwood that the bugs don’t eat, which is now illegal to cut and much more expensive to buy than it used to be. “Can you still get this good wood?” we asked.

“Now it is difficult to get it,” he replied. Then his eyes lit up as he remembered something, and he told us about a house that was for sale, made from the good wood. In Cambodia, it is not uncommon to move a house from one location to another, as wooden houses are a bit like Lincoln Log structures with nails added in key spots. He offered to take us to see the house the next day.

Adam and I had basically decided to build a house from concrete and brick to avoid contributing to local deforestation. However, we were afraid the villagers might not feel comfortable in a concrete home, which is not a common type of construction in our rural area. So we agreed to go see the wooden house.

The following morning, we piled into the truck and headed to the hill where the wooden house was located. As we toured the house, I admired the solid stairs leading to a pleasant front porch and the closely spaced floor slats. Many floors here have significant gaps between the slats, which is great for sweeping, but small items can fall though and get lost, and bugs easily find their way in. Also, the house doors were built well and have real doorknobs. After looking the house over carefully, we went home to talk and pray about it, both feeling impressed that this was God’s solution for us.

Since the house had only two bedrooms and no kitchen or bathroom, we knew we would have to add on to it, making it easy to build in a few conveniences that would make daily chores a lot less time-consuming. The wooden house would provide a familiar, comfortable atmosphere for our local visitors, and we wouldn’t be contributing to deforestation, because the house was already built.

While we continued praying about the house, we contacted our field director. He encouraged us, but reminded us that we didn’t yet have the full amount we would need to purchase it. Still believing that God was leading us to purchase the house, we asked our friend if it would be possible to pay in three installments—$6,000 up front, which almost covered the actual cost of the house, then $5,000 before re-assembly began, and finally $4,000 after re-assembly was complete. The homeowner and the construction workers agreed to these terms.

By mid-September, most of the disassembled house lay in our yard. We needed to pay the $5,000 for the work to continue, but we didn’t have it yet. Then, right before we thought the workers would have to stop, the exact amount we needed came in to our building fund. We hadn’t told anyone of this specific need, but God knew it, and thankfully the person He told was listening to His prompting! This exact amount and its miraculous timing reaffirmed that we were indeed following God’s plan.

The sound of hammering filled our ears as the house started going up. It was fun to see pillars stretch upward and floorboards spreading across the joists. Soon walls and rafters began to give the house a recognizable shape. As we watched the house rising up in our yard, we realized the final payment would soon need to be made.

About one week before the wooden part of the house was complete, Adam decided to stay up late and call the AFM treasurer to find out if there was money available for the final payment. As they discussed what had come in to the house fund, what had been spent so far for the house, and what was still needed, they discovered that, almost to the dollar, we had the exact amount needed for the last payment. This time the need had been supplied by many smaller donations. Again, God had come through with perfect timing. In mid-December the wooden part of the house was complete!

In January, Adam asked the contractor for a quote on the addition, which would be constructed with concrete and brick. Two days later, the contractor showed up at our house eager to start digging the footings for the concrete pillars the next day. Apparently, the machine he wanted to use would be leaving our area for a while, and he wanted to take advantage of it before it was gone. By the end of February we had the foundations poured and the pillars up.

Work on the house slowed down, and we began preparing for our trip to Thailand for evangelism training. We didn’t know when the rest of the house would be finished, but we continued trusting that God, having led us this far, would continue to supply our needs and those of our ministry.

The weekend before we left for Thailand, we found out that a student missionary would be joining us next school year. We were very excited about her coming, but it meant we would have to be moved out of the SM house by the time she joined us! I started wondering how life would be living in a house without a bathroom or kitchen. Again, I reminded myself that God had shown time and time again that He would supply our needs at just the right time, whether that meant an indoor bathroom or not. While in Thailand, we continued to pray that God would lead in a very visible way.

Less than a month after our return from Thailand, our building fund goal was met, and were able to get the house finished before flood season and the arrival of our now two SMs! We stand in awe of God and His provision for us as we continue His work here. His timing has been perfect each step of the way. We are thankful for those who have listened and responded so generously to His voice. To all who have partnered with Him in providing this house of ministry, Thank you!

• Twitter