Are You the One?

It has been a little over three weeks since I dropped my son off to college and boy is life different without him!  However, I had been praying and preparing myself for this change for a while now, so the transition has been going well.  The second weekend after he was gone it was challenging, but I find the more I pour myself into my purpose and focus on all the good things I have, I see life as amazing!  I’ve resolved to enjoy this single season in life for all the joy and peace it brings!

One of the things I had to do recently was make a decision on my son’s car.  I had to decide if I should sell it or keep it until next summer when he returns.  After prayer, I knew it was time to sell it as it’s a little over 20 years old.  There would be too much work involved on my part to keep it going over the long Minnesota winters, so I put the car on Craigslist a week ago today.

I had never sold a car before, but I knew I needed to prepare some things beforehand. Before my son left, I asked him to clean out the car.  I also had to locate the title and do some research to price its value. I took multiple pictures.  I asked someone who had sold a car before some things I needed to include in the ad and finally I was able to post the ad.  I had some training on negotiation, so I priced the car a little higher than I wanted as I know most people offer you less than your asking price.  I posted it for $1000, but I actually wanted $800.

The emails came flooding in!  I didn’t post my phone number as I knew that would open a flood of unwanted texts and phone calls.  Whoever wanted this car, would have to communicate by email to begin anyway.  I almost sold it on day 1, but the person ended up going with the car they looked at prior to mine.  Then, it seemed like people were contacting me for other reasons.  One guy was trying to get me to buy a product similar to Carfax report to bring in more potential buyers.  Another advised that I made a mistake in the ad and needed to fix it.  I actually appreciated that person!  Others would set up times to come see the car and never show, while others were strongly  interested and then all of a sudden, they went ghost!  Needless to say, I got discouraged.  I hated this process.  Then on Wednesday evening, I received an email from a man, let’s call him John.  John asked me if the car was still available and if I’d accept $900.  I told him that it is available and I will accept $900 (remember, my goal was to sell it for $800).  I also told him the amount of miles on the car as that seemed to turn off some other buyers.  I figured let’s get this out of the way now.  His response was a pleasant surprise.  He said, “I’m not worried about the miles, my daughter has the same make and model car that has about 100,000 miles more than this one”.  He said he was off on Friday and would like to pick up the car then.  I told him that would be fine.  I listed my phone number at the end of my email response.

I didn’t take the ad down because I needed to ensure John came through on Friday!  Therefore on Thursday, I was contacted by other buyers asking if I’d take $800 and some $600.  I told them I had a buyer, but if something fell through, I’d follow up.  At 8pm Thursday night, John sent me a text and wanted to set up a time to pick up the car on Friday.  We settled for 1pm.  At 12:48pm on Friday, John sent a text and advised he was at the local convenience store I advised I’d meet him at.  He described the vehicle he was in so I’d know how to identify him.  When I arrived, he was indeed there and proceeded to hand me the envelope of cash.  He hadn’t even test drove the car!  He said, “I know it will be fine, my daughter has one”.  He got into the car and started it up to ensure it ran well.  That had been his only concern the entire time. He just wanted to ensure it ran well. I told him a couple nuances about the car and handed him the title. The transaction was completed.  Car sold in 6 days!

The Lord used this experience to parallel how he sees the process of courting before marriage. I was in awe!  If you recall, before I was ready to post the ad, I had to prepare the car.  SImilarly, we must prepare ourselves as sons and daughters of God to be in a relationship with the person God has called us to.  This involves developing our relationship with Christ, letting go of our carnal nature, following God in all our ways, being disciplined in all we do and truly knowing the word so that we’re not deceived. 

Next, the ad was posted.  This is similar to Christ lifting your viel so others can see you and know you’re available for a mate.  Seeing you’ve gone through the preparation, you know how to screen potential candidates.  You know your worth.  You know that the person coming to you will need to recognize and appreciate your value.  You’re not willing to accept less than your worth.  You also aren’t giving your contact information to everyone!  You’ve learned to guard your heart and set boundaries.  Not close your heart, but guard it so you can screen people and examine their motives.  When you feel like you see Christ like characteristics in a person, you may decide to take another step and examine further.

Finally, you know you’ve found the right person.  This person has been examined.  They’ve been consistent to their word and have proven themselves through action.  They respect your boundaries and the value you’ve placed on yourself in Christ.  THEY WILL NOT REQUIRE A TEST DRIVE!  You will not have to go outside of the will of God to keep them or do anything that does not align to your values!  They know your value and meet or exceed you where you’re at.  To be clear, the one we’re truly all looking for and need is Christ.  He’s the only “One” that can fill our deep voids.  However, the person Christ has for us will look similar to Christ as we’re all called to be like him in all we do.  No one can ever be perfect like Christ, but they should be striving to walk in all the ways of Christ.

To all of my brothers and sisters in Christ, I would plead with you to wait on the Lord.  In due time, you will receive what you’re asking for if it’s in accordance with God’s will.  He is faithful, if we do our part and patiently wait for him.

Be blessed ~ Felicia

“Wait on the Lord and keep his way.  And he shall exalt you to inherit the land.  When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.” Psalm 37:34