Never too Late!

     We left Portland on June 3rd and are presently living here at our son's house in northern New Mexico while we wait for a rental in Nashville, Tennessee, to open up. It's been very difficult finding a rental since we don't have sufficient guaranteed monthly income.
     On the last day we had together with our granddaughter before her parents drove to San Francisco to work for 8 months, five-year-old Ava had begged to go fishing with David (her grandpa).
     Well, we finally found a reel and line in their storage unit, but no fishing pole. Also we realized it would take too much time to drive 45 minutes into town and get a license for one day.
     So we decided to take Ava to the resort of Red River, NM, about a half an hour's drive away. We rode up the mountain ski lift with her and when we got back down, we saw a little stream nearby where a father and teenage son were fishing.
     We walked over to watch the two as they cast out their lines. The water was so clear. You could see a number of fish swimming around in it.
     I started praying, "Dear Lord, please let a fish bite the lure so Ava can at least watch it get reeled in."
     But nothing happened.
     Then the teenager (after hearing our story of how much Ava had hoped to fish with her grandpa) kindly offered to let Ava hold his line for a while, which she really enjoyed. We could see the fish swim around the hook, but none of them would bite. All the while, I kept praying.
     Finally, we decided it was time to leave (since no fish were biting).
     Just as we turned and began to walk away, the boy suddenly hollered, "I've got one!"
     He generously handed Ava his pole and let her reel in the fish (with his help). She was so excited to experience actually reeling in the trout. And I was very thankful God gave her the special desire of her heart on that last day she was spending with us.

      Afterwards, as we walked to our car, I felt the Lord say to me, "I answered your prayer, even after you quit praying for a fish to bite. Don't worry. I won't answer any of your prayers too late. You'll get a place to rent at the right time and the right place."


Helen (& David) Haidle

10/5/12 --- NOTE: In the middle of September (6 weeks after the above incident), one of our son's neighbors in Nashville told him that the young woman across the street would be moving out of her duplex.
     Because this young woman was attending a disaster training program in Florida, no one knew if she would be moving out by October 1st, or October 15th, or perhaps it would be even Nov. 1st before she finished her training and moved to the midwest.
     But it worked out that she was given an "emergency leave" so she could come back to Nashville and move everything out on September 29th---just when we had arrived in town and needed to move into a place of our own.
     It is a great BLESSING to be living across the street from our son and his family. Our two and a half-year-old grandson can be walked back and forth between our houses. This saves both of our families an incredible amount of time driving in all the traffic of the city.
     And even though the duplex is very small, David and I have set up our offices together in one bedroom where we are managing to work together in harmony :)
     We thank the Lord for the right timing and the right place for us to live! It is perfect! And it is totally HIS gift to us, not a result of our many hours of searching on the internet or of our son's searching.
     Also, the Lord showed us several reasons why we needed to stay in New Mexico for four months before coming here. That time also prepared us to live in a small place and be content. God is good! The Lord DID give us the right place to rent at the right time and in just the right place!