Inconvenient Christianity

Well, we have had quite a day.

We were thrilled to finally find a house yesterday. Most of the places that we have seen have been very small. They would have been difficult to use as a ministry home. When we described what we were looking for to an agent, she told us she had the perfect place. It was a bit over our price range, but we decided to take a look.

Our four primary concerns finding a home have been location, security, size (for ministry), and the kids. We wanted to find a place that the girls really liked. We went yesterday to see this home. It was perfect except for the price. We offered what we could afford. The owner agreed.

We signed the lease last night and went to buy paint. The house is white, white, white. Every room is white. The floors are mostly white tile. WHITE!

We came to Johannesburg with no home furnishings. The church has been circulating a list, collecting items for our new house. We started making arrangements to move in Saturday. We rented a trailer. We bought a refrigerator and a bed that was to be delivered. We were ready to go.

The owner reconsidered the price after receiving the lease. She asked for more money. We reminded her that we had a verbal agreement. After thinking about it overnight, she decided to still work with us.

The challenge came when the lease was returned to us. She had added a number of lines. Now remember, it is Friday night, April 30th, when we received it. We were supposed to sign it, return it, and move in Saturday morning, May 1. We had arranged to pick up all of the donated items Saturday and had also arranged for the bed and refrigerator to be delivered Saturday.

The owner lives in London. Everything was being done through email and fax.

We had written in the lease, under section 8.7 regarding pets, "one dog." She wrote right next to it, "which will stay outside the house." DOH! Chicago dogs are not trained to live outdoors. They would freeze to death. Everyone that knows Milo knows, he is VERY much an indoor dog. On another page the landlord wrote, "no pets are to be allowed in the house. Any damage to property is to rectified by end of lease."

Now what? The agent was trying to convince us that the owner was just stating that if the dog did any damage to the house, we fixed it. She encouraged us to sign it, send it back, and just move in.

Mercy.

It was so tempting.

We finally found a great place. The kids loved it. The price was right. The location rocked. I so badly wanted to just sign it and move in. I know that Milo wouldn't do any damage to the carpets. I know that was the owner's concern. I could completely agree with the "spirit" of the law. But I could not, with a clear conscience, sign it.

It turned out to be quite a discussion with the kids. God provides these great opportunities for us as parents. Our kids get to watch us squirm, wrestle, and make decisions. They learn from our example.

We all REALLY want our own place. We are quite a bit fatigued, living in a home that is not our own. We are tired of dealing with the demon-possessed dog outside.

Sometimes Christianity is inconvenient. Doing to right thing is tough.

When Hannah asked before going to bed if there was any chance that we were moving into the house tomorrow I had to say, "sorry...it is very unlikely. It is much better that we have clear consciences with no home, than to compromise."

She agreed and went to bed.

I wrote a letter to the owner in London. I described everything. I apologized for any confusion. I appealed for her to reconsider and even included a picture of Milo in the letter.

Now we wait.