01/02/2023
2022 Preaus House Project Review
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5
New Year’s Day 2022, Dusty and I sat across the table from each other in this house that we have tried to sell over the past 5 years hopeless, broken, exhausted, and angry… at each other, at the house, at life, and at God... and yes, this is the same house where we wed 11.5 years ago on the front porch.
If you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plans…
In a desperate attempt to keep from losing our savings, our sanity, and our lives, we decided to commit every bit of “free” time (in between being parents of 2 young boys and both working full time, living 45 minutes away) to doing whatever needed to be done to put the house on the market. Trying to get it sold as quickly as possible was our only way out of this unimaginable nightmare. So, we cried, prayed a lot, and committed to that goal, and then, amazingly God opened a door where we never knew a door existed as a possibility. 🙏🏻❤️
No doubt the year has been a hard one, but I got up every single day praying and asking God to guide our journey of being short term rental hosts. We experienced so many extremely low days; however, we started seeing the silver linings and God’s faithfulness. In 2022, our old house hosted about 80 different stays with possibly 300 guests, and as much as that has blessed us, we have realized that our struggles and us trusting God have also blessed SO many others. The stories our guests have shared with us and the positive impact that our house has had on so many lives is ONLY something that could come from God’s devine love and grace. ❤️❤️
I share this story in hopes that if you’re sitting in a position that feels completely hopeless or that you are dealing with something that you are POSITIVE has the potential to destroy you and your family, turn to God humbly for answers… He can turn any situation you are in for GOOD.
Today, Dusty and I (and our boys) sit here a year later so very thankful that the house is rented out with enough time to allow us to spend a few days camping and hanging out with friends. So, I have spent time today reflecting on how God has carried us so far. 🙌🏻
We have learned to live more selflessly. We have devoted so much of our “free” time to serving others in ways we never thought. We have done jobs that we didn’t know we were capable of doing. We were able to prioritize our family. We made it to church more this year than any other because (as God would have it) Christ Church Ruston is on the route to Farmerville. 🕊️(Sundays are the most popular check-out day.) Our boys have gotten to know our amazing neighbors (The Sparks.) I could go on and on talking about how amazing it is to see God’s perfect grace extended to us through His mercy.
2023 I’m sure will continue to challenge us and bring new struggles, but I know who holds tomorrow. And I’m proud of how far we have come and how we’ve been blessed through a situation we thought was meant to destroy us. ☺️
Pictures are from a year ago when the house “came back” to us and some project/updates we’ve completed.
Love to you ALL and Happy New Year!
❤️ The Burtons
