Testimonys

This is a series of events that happened to me over 10 years ago and spanned 5 years... Many other things have happened in my life but I am sharing these events with you for now... I have attached photos of the Bank Flyer that was given to me which enabled me to close the deal on the house... You will understand better after you read my testimony...

This story is indisputable proof that God governs everything and is in complete control of every situation! If you have a question about anything you have read, please write to me and let me know...

Take care, my friend and God be with you always...

Lee

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Years ago, when I was living in Washington state, my ex-wife and I moved
to a very small town near the US-Canada border. We lived there for about
12 years but during that time, we always rented instead of owning a
house. One day, we talked about this and decided to try to buy a house...
I wasn't really keen on the idea because the economy wasn't too great but
we went ahead and tried anyway... After looking at many houses, there was
one that was very beautiful... The real estate agent showed it to us and
we agreed on a deal for the house... I was praying so hard since I really
didn't know how we were going to be able to buy this house... I worked
very hard and came up with the money for the down payment, title search,
appraisal, inspections, etc. Then two days before the deal was supposed
to close, I got a phone call from the bank, telling me that I needed $400
for the closing costs!

I was stunned!

I maxed out my credit cards, emptied my savings and paid out quite a bit
from my paychecks to get to this point and now, I was faced with $400
which I did not have... I had 2 days to come up with the money and I just
could not see a way to get it.. I went to work that day very discouraged,
frustrated and feeling very down... As I arrived at work, my boss said there was
going to be a manager's meeting and I HAD to be there... I really didn't
want to go especially in the mood I was in but since he said it was
mandatory, I said ok and went to my boss's office to wait for the other
managers...

As I waited, my boss handed me a stack of flyers and asked me to pass them
to each manager as they walked in... My heart almost stopped when I read
what was on those flyers! It was a flyer from MY bank which was offering
some special promotions strictly for the employees at my store... One of
the promotions said "Up to $400 towards closing costs for first time
mortgages!!!!! (I have attached a photo of the flyer to this email.)

I just about went through the roof! I jumped up and asked my boss to
PLEASE let me go to the bank after the meeting... I STILL have that
flyer even now... It's sitting on my dresser in the bedroom... When I
took that flyer to the bank to show the bank manager, she looked at it in
surprise and said she doesn't know anything about it... never saw it
before! However it was on the bank's letterhead so she looked at me and
smiled and said, "Lee, someone up there must be smiling down on you."

Anyway, I bought new furniture and put up a fence for my dogs and
Everything looked awesome! The deal went through in February 2001.

Now on Sept 11, 2001 when the US got attacked in NY, everything came to a
standstill... Since we lived right by the border, NO ONE was crossing because
they were afraid and my town looked like a ghost town... Business was so bad
that we worked with a skeleton crew... Two months later, my boss called a meeting...
He said that business was suffering so bad that he had to make some tough decisions...
To make a long story short, I got laid off from work that day...

I was devastated!

Where I lived, the closest big city was over 350 miles away...
I had no idea what we were going to do...
I took on small jobs and again used up my credit cards
But it wasn't enough...
I did have my unemployment checks coming to me but
They were not enough to cover all my expenses...

My ex-wife decided to go to Canada to stay with her sons
While I worked on making the heartbreaking decision to sell the house..
It was the worst time to try to do this since everything was so unstable
Because of the Sept 11 attacks... No one was buying anything!
So I prayed and prayed and prayed!

Finally one day, I was surfing on the internet to see what I could do...
I saw a website that talked about lease to purchase agreements for every US state...

There was my answer! I was going to sell the house
By leasing to purchase to make it easier for someone to eventually buy my house...

All I needed to do is find out how to find a buyer for this type of transaction.
God showed me right away...

I woke the next morning and turned on my stereo.. On the radio station,
they had what was called 'Open Line' where you could advertise for free anything you wanted to sell...

They had 'open line' every Tuesday and Saturday morning for one hour...
So I woke up early and called the radio station every Tuesday and Saturday morning...
I did this for many weeks with no good prospects... I was getting really discouraged...
I was late with my mortgage payment and was worried that I was not going to make it...

One day, my phone rang and a man asked me if I still had my house...
I said yes and he said that he and his wife wanted to see it...

They were calling from across the state and desired to move back to my town!
This radio station only covered the county I lived in! How did they hear that station?

Later I found out that the man was on his computer and was going through different radio stations and he heard one of the previous broadcasts and got my number and called me. There are thousands of radio stations!

Anyway, they came to see the house and they loved it... They even wanted to adopt my cat which was awesome! They bought the furniture and they bought my other vehicle...

But I had NO idea what I was going to do after that... I had nothing left - just my truck, my 2 dogs and whatever fit in the back of the truck.

Anyway, I called my ex and told her what happened so we decided that I
should come to Canada to see what I could find for work... There was lots
of work but it would take too long for me to get the proper work visa...

So my ex-wife opened up a travel atlas at random and put her finger on a page.
It pointed to a town called Kalispell, Montana...

I thought, Well... how can we go there? I don't know anything about the
area or anyone there... But we packed up and drove to Kalispell...
When we got there, the state fair was going on so when we tried finding a
hotel room, everything was booked and it didn't make it any easier that we
had our two dogs with us - Big dogs!

So we drove all over Kalispell over and over and over again until there
was no place left to look... My ex was starting to get sick and both of
us were exhausted so I went to a pay phone to call a close friend of ours
and told her the situation... I was in such despair that I had no words
left to say - money was dwindling so quickly..

Our friend said, "Well Lee, this sounds like a perfect opportunity to see
just how God is going to meet your needs... You should be excited!"

I just about dropped the phone. :(

I told her... "But we need to sleep and eat... what do you mean a perfect opportunity?"

She answered, "It's an adventure, Lee... not a crisis... an adventure
similar to what people went through in the Bible and God delivered every one of
those people through even the most hopeless situations.."
She told me to find a park and get some sleep... and then wait to see what God would do
for us... I asked her to pray and she said ok and we hung up the phone...

Afterwards, we drove to a park on the south part of town and spread out a
blanket under the trees... We slept for a couple of hours and felt much
better... When I awoke, I sat up and looked down the street and could
not believe my eyes!

We drove through every single part of town and now all of a
sudden, I saw another hotel that we hadn't seen before... I know we drove
by there because I remembered the park! But I swear, I do not
remember seeing that hotel! and it was not even hidden from view!

(Lion Park is where we slept. The hotel is where the A is.)



So I went to the hotel and asked the clerk if there were any rooms
available... She said no and they were all booked for the week because of
the state fair but that she would take my phone number and call me if
there were any cancellations...

Oh, and yes, they accepted pets!
Two days later, the woman called me and
told me that there was a room available - someone canceled! So we
checked into the room and got some much needed rest...

However, we were so low on money that I only had enough for maybe two more
days at the hotel and then we would be absolutely without money... I
tried finding work but nothing came through.. On the night before
we had to leave the hotel, I walked into the lobby to get some ice... The
woman behind the counter was talking to the owner of the hotel because one
of the maintenance employees quit his job and they needed to find
someone right away... I went to the counter and told the clerk that I
was available and could start right away... She quickly called the owner back
and told him what I said, and he said "Okay.. start in the morning."
I had a job! Not only that, but we would be allowed to stay in our room at a discount
and my employer agreed to take the money for the room out of my paychecks...

So I worked almost everyday and was very busy... Then business suddenly
dropped off and there was not much work left so the employer told me that I
must be out of the suite by Dec 20... My hours were severely cut AND we
were in dire circumstances again...

Again, we prayed and prayed and prayed....

I was going to the employment office frequently to check for
work but nothing was available... Two weeks or so before we had to move
out, I went to the employment office to look again... Nothing was there
so I was just leaving the office when I looked up and saw a small piece of
paper advertising a job selling motorcycle leathers... It was a job that
required me to drive to different stores and setting up displays of leathers
all through the Western United States.

Anyway, after speaking to the employer, he said he would call me back...
It sounded very good... I would be traveling all over the Western US
driving a box truck and selling leathers... I did not hear anything from
him for a few days and I was getting worried because we had to be out of
the hotel suite in just over a week.. Just as I was about to look for
another job, my phone rang and it was the owner of the leather company!

He said, "Lee, are you still interested in the job?"

I said, "Yes!"

He said, "OK... you need to drive to California and pick up the truck and
you will be taking over the other employee's route..."

I said "Okay!"

BUT

I was just about to tell him that I had no money to drive to California
when he said, "Oh and Lee? I will be paying for your gas and the mileage
on your car and you will be on payroll starting on the day you leave!"

And he wired the money to my bank account that day! God is so awesome!

I asked him when I had to arrive in California...

He said, "You will be leaving Montana on Dec 20 and be there by Dec 21."

On Dec 20!!! That's the exact day we had to move out of the hotel room!

I was ecstatic and felt much excitement and gratitude to God!

We left Montana on Dec 20 and arrived in California the next day, and I
took over the route from the other employee... We spent Christmas in
Hollywood (where I grew up :) ).

It was amazing and I loved my job and it paid very well! My employer paid
for all our hotel stays, gas, anything to do with the work... The only
thing I was required to pay for was food.

Anyway, I sold motorcycle leathers all over California and even had a record day
where I got a $500 bonus for one day. My boss said he was having a
competition between all the drivers and would pay us an extra $100 for
each $1000 in sales... I had a $5000 day! Praise God! Everything
was going very well and the job was great...

Then one day as we were driving to the next store, my ex-wife was
following me in our car while I drove the large truck... Her car started
making some banging noises and stopped right in front of a mechanic's
shop... The engine in the car was damaged beyond repair... We had to be
at the other store in 2 days so we were in a bad situation.

The mechanic said he had a car sitting in the back of his shop that had
been abandoned... The owner of the car wanted to have repairs done on the
car which the mechanic performed. Then the owners decided they did not want
the car anymore... We went to see the car - it was a beautiful
Oldsmobile, leather seats, power everything, in excellent condition...
And the mechanic only wanted what was owed on the bill - $1000! Thank You God!

So we bought the car and had the plates put on it and we resumed our
travel the next day... We arrived at the new store where I had plenty of
time to set up my displays... I even had some extra time to relax in the sun by the pool at the
hotel... Everything was going well again...
(((((((((((((( GOD ))))))))))))

We traveled through Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, Colorado,
Wyoming, Washington state and of course California... My employer called
me one day to tell me that I must come back to Montana - that he lost
all his accounts... So we packed up and started driving back to Montana...
As we were driving through Wyoming, my ex said the car was acting strange -
that there was the engine light on in the dash... Her car stopped at the side of the road at 4 am in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming...

We attempted to start the car but it would not do anything... It was a Saturday morning and no one was driving on that highway.. Even the coyotes and rattlesnakes were no where to be seen..

Anyway, I had a newspaper in my truck that had an advertisement for a tow
truck in the next town so I called them... A man answered the phone and said they were closed, that he was only doing paperwork before leaving for the weekend... I explained my situation and he said all he could do is call this other man to see if he could come to get us... Otherwise we would have to wait until Monday...

So we waited and prayed like never before. My employer called me and told me that I MUST be back in Billings by 5 pm that day or I would lose my job... He NEEDED the leather goods that I had right away!

Again I prayed....

My phone rang and it was the man from the tow company...
He said that he spoke to the other employee who agreed to come pick up our car!
So we waited and he arrived and towed us to the next town, and dropped
the car off at a mechanic's shop...

which was closed...

and would not be open until Monday!

Again we prayed and prayed and time was being lost. I was beginning to despair..
My ex-wife suddenly decided to get into the car to try to start it again... and you know what?????
That crazy vehicle started! Definitely God's doing!

The engine light was still on but we drove quickly to Billings which was 165 miles (265 kilometers) away!
The car was making strange noises but I told my ex-wife that we would keep praying and driving...

We arrived at Billings at 4:30 pm!

I unloaded the truck and then we got into the car to drive to our hotel
room... Nearly a block away from the hotel, the car began making very loud sounds and
suddenly, pieces started falling out from underneath the car!
The car stopped in the hotel parking lot.. We were safe but the car was beyond repair...

The mechanic who looked at the car was shaking his head...
He could not understand how the car was able to drive 165 miles with the alternator
damaged! He said it was impossible!

The pieces that were flying out from under the car were pieces of the
alternator and the pulley wheel.. So my employer sold us his van so we would have a vehicle...
After 2 weeks went by, we drove to Arizona because there was no
work left with my employer...

I could not find work there and it was also getting pretty warm...
I called a friend in Montana to see if there was anything available and he
said yes, to come to Kalispell right away...

So we packed up our belongings and drove back to Kalispell...
When we arrived though, the job was gone
so I was looking for a place to rent AND a job once again..

After looking for work again in Kalispell and trying to find a place to live,
it was looking rather hopeless...

So again, my ex-wife went to Canada and I stayed in Montana to find work and a
place to live and to get some money to move to Canada...

No one would rent to me because of my dogs...
They told me to either destroy them or give them away....

I refused to destroy them or give them away so I bought a tent and lived outdoors for 5 months
with my dogs....

and I found a job... Well God found me a job Click Me!



I was afraid at first of living outdoors... It was very cold - there was ice all around my tent...
I had no heat or electricity and all I had was my dogs' beds to sleep on...

But after I started working, I bought a queen size air mattress and more
blankets and it was paradise (most of the time hehe!)....
There were some severe storms and cold weather
but instead of feeling despair, I was thrilled to be in that atmosphere...
I would fall asleep to lightning and thunder breaking in the sky above my
tent and I remembered the words of my friend that this was an adventure!

So I worked, and explored the beautiful wilderness and city, and had some amazing moments...

I used to go to this one area called Badrock Canyon just off the highway next to the
Flathead River... Snow and glacier water came out of the mountain side
and I brought gallon jugs to that place to fill up with that excellent water...
Someone put a pipe into the mountain side so everyone could get some water....
It was such cold water that the jugs would fog up...



One day as I was filling the jugs, I looked into the brush and saw a face looking at me -

a HUGE face

a black bear's face!

I slowly backed away from the water and put the jugs into my van
and suddenly, he came out of the brush and started crying!
He was a young black bear and from the sounds of the way he was crying, his
mother was close by! People began pulling off the highway to look at him which
did not make the situation any better...

They were taking pictures of him and suddenly, he jumped up
on some trees to get away from all the people...
I took 2 pictures and then got into my van and drove away...
I did not want to meet his mother...



I used to lay down in my tent at night and listen to the wolves howling to
each other... It was pure magic! I never knew how far they were from me
but they appeared to be very close at times... I love how God brings all His beautiful
creatures together for us to love and enjoy..

Anyway at some point, I had to start thinking of what to do to get to
Canada... As I prayed about this, I talked to a woman who said that I should look up
a certain merchandising company to see if they had any positions open...

So I contacted the company and they said yes, but the only openings they had were in
Hawaii!

I told the company that I would agree to work on one condition:
my dogs were NOT going into quarantine in Hawaii...
They said, "Oh...... well ok...." and told me to get back to them with an answer..

So after doing some research and making endless phone calls,
I found out about a law that the Hawaiian government passed that would allow my dogs to get
off the plane with me and NOT go into quarantine!

So that is what I prepared to do for over 4 months...
I had to take many steps to ensure my dogs would not go into quarantine and
it all worked out perfectly so everything was all set...

Once I got all that done, I made plans to go to Seattle, Washington and catch an
airplane to Hawaii with my dogs...

I had a problem though: I could not bring my vehicle with me to Hawaii
and I needed a way to get to Seattle with my dogs and their kennels etc...

So I started asking people to drive me to Seattle and then afterwards
I would sign over the vehicle to them for free...
I owed $400 on the vehicle but I would pay that gladly if they would drive me to Seattle...

No one wanted my van or to drive me to Seattle...

So again, I called our close friend and told her the situation...
She said she might know some people who would need the vehicle...
So I said, "Wonderful!! They could have it for free!"

The people lived near Seattle so all I had to do was drive there, give them the
vehicle and then catch the plane. My friend said, "Okay." So those plans were made...

I was overjoyed with excitement and gratitude again to God!
So I packed my luggage and started driving to Seattle...

I arrived in Seattle and checked into the hotel and called my friend from the hotel room...

BUT

My friend told me that the people changed their minds and did not want the vehicle
after all...!!!!!!!!!

I did not know what to do except pray...

I had exactly 8 hours until I had to be in the hotel lobby to catch a
shuttle bus to the airport... What could I do now??
Again I started asking people if they would please take my vehicle FOR FREE...
And they all refused.... I sure got some funny looks hehe!

Again I started praying - urgently!

The verse that came to mind was this: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and
lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and
He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6"

So that's what I did....

The first thought that came to me was to take my dogs for a walk.. hmmm ok...
Okay... since that was the first thought, I did exactly that...

After I walked the dogs, the next thought came to get into my vehicle and drive....
I had no idea where I was going or why I was driving or what I was doing
but again since that was the thought that came to me, I got into the vehicle
with my dogs and started driving without knowing anything....

Everything was closed since it was 8 pm and I knew no one in Seattle at all...
I drove for about 10 minutes until I arrived at a traffic light and stopped...

While I waited for the traffic light, I looked across the street and saw a small used car lot...
It was dark and was closed - the only light on was in front of the tiny office building...
As I turned to look at the traffic light, I saw a man walking across the
lot... I turned around to look and he was going to the tiny office.

I was compelled to go to that man and talk to him
so I turned the vehicle around and drove into the lot...
The man walked towards me and I got out of the van to talk to him...

I explained the situation to him and told him that I would give him the
vehicle for free AND pay the $400 if he would please take the van from me... I did not want
to abandon it... He said Okay he would talk to me about it in the morning and to come back then...

I told him I could not come back in the morning.. I had to catch an airplane.
He told me to come into his office so we could try to work this out...
He said he had never done anything like this before so he would
try calling a friend to see if he was home...
His friend was supposed to leave town so he was not sure if his friend would
be there.

When this man called his friend, his friend was just preparing to leave...
The man quickly explained my situation and asked his friend what he should
do... His friend told him to fill out some forms and have me sign them and then
the transaction would be complete.... So we filled out the forms and then walked out to the vehicle.
The man looked at my vehicle and really liked it!

I asked the man if he would drive my dogs and me back to the hotel...
He said, "Yes."

So we drove back to the hotel and as I got out, I thanked him and
promised that I would pay the $400 owing on the vehicle...

He said to me, "Lee, don't worry about the $400. The vehicle is worth much more
than that... I will pay the $400!"

Wow! even the $400 was provided for by God! Thank You God!

From the time I talked to my friend who told me the
people changed their minds to the time I was dropped off at the hotel was
just over 1 hour! And yet I asked people for weeks in Montana to take my vehicle!

God had different plans though... He even thought about the dogs and their
comfort by compelling me to walk them :)
He showed me exactly what to do to find the right person to take my vehicle
and God even took care of the $400 I owed!

Isn't God awesome!

Afterwards I worked in Hawaii for 6 months and then left Hawaii to fly
to Canada where I am presently.

Unless He tells me otherwise... LOLOL!!

2 comments:

  1. I am new to this, completely. I'm not even sure when I'm done this comment it will work or where it will go. I came by the Christian chat room today, Sat, 3/22/14 my Nickname is HopeRenewed. I just really wanted to reply to the Testimony above, I think the owner is Lee. I was very blessed by the testimony and the way it was written. I felt as if I was along for the entire journey. Thank you for the time you took to recall the details and share them. I could certainly see you blogging on a daily basis and or making a collection of your experiences and compiling them into a book of encouragement. The continuous encounters of difficulties could have easily been authenticated entirely as a story of burdensome woe's and instead it was beautifully conglomerated and presented as a testament to one mans dedication and relinquished Will, to the Lover of His Soul. May you continue to keep This Light Shining, leading many safely to The One True God. God Bless You! In Him HopeRenewed

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  2. Thanks Donna for ecuragment! May God bless your heart and thanks for coming here to check our mission and actualy the purpose of This Ministry.. I didn't have time recently to work more on this blog,but will do for sure now..adding works of God hands trough our lifes.. we also encuruage people to send us testimonys and expiriance and we will post them in here.

    ReplyDelete