After nearly two hours of driving around with no success, we pulled over to talk and pray.
Having finally arrived in Khon Kaen, Thailand after more than three years of preparation, we were told that the best way to find a rental house was simply to go out looking since many landlords do not advertise. Our teammates searched for several months before finding a suitable home, and I was worried that this might be our fate as well. Feeling tired and slightly discouraged, we discussed the matter and prayed for guidance, stating that we wanted to get settled into a home so that we could begin working as quickly as possible.
Shortly after the prayer ended, I remarked to Cindi that I really liked the neighborhood that we were parked in, to which she readily agreed. The rows of towering trees that lined the sides of the streets gave the look of peace and tranquility, and somehow reminded me of a neighborhood I would find in America. “Do you want to go find a house here?” I asked Cindi. After responding in the affirmative I started up our truck with a renewed determination to find our new home.
Driving meticulously through every side street we finally stopped in front of an empty- looking two story house with an overgrown front lawn; surely no one lives here we thought. The neighbor across the street graciously called the owner for me and to my surprise, was told that he would be right there! When he finally arrived 15 minutes later, he showed us the house and told us that he had wanted to put a rental sign up but had just been too busy to do so; he is a professor at the local university. After viewing the house we were both very interested. The owner told us the price (which was lower than we were anticipating) and added that they would be willing to negotiate; he then told us to take some time to think about it before making a final decision.
We left feeling very excited, but neither of us wanted to make a quick decision so we spent the next few days looking at other options. After praying about the matter we decided that if they would be willing to come down $90 on the rental price, which would bring it to the limit that we had budgeted; we would take that as a sign. I then called the owner, made the offer, and was told that he would call me back after consulting with his mother. When I got the return call, I was peppered with some questions (they hadn’t had a good experience with the previous tenants), after answering the questions, I was told that they were willing to accept our offer!
As we settle into our new home and begin working in Khon Kaen, we ask that you pray that the Lord would guide us in our work just as surely as he guided us to our new house. We look forward to the journey!
