Thursday, October 11, 2012

Our Story Continues

But Moses said to the Lord,"Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue."  Exodus 4:10

I start this post not really knowing what to say.  I feel very much like Moses expressed, I am not eloquent, not now or ever.  I pray that I will be able to communicate with you exactly what the Lord wills and nothing more, nothing less.

It's been some time since I've posted on Iliana's blog.  From the start of this blog until now, God has moved in amazing ways in her life.  What God has done in her life is nothing short of a miracle.  This post, however,  is to let you know not only about her, but the entire Wilkins family.

For the about the past 2 years, we have been facing some serious financial situations.  We had chosen to not share them, but prayed about them instead.  Our family lost 1/3 of our household income some time ago.  Although Dwight has worked tirelessly to provide for us, it seems that the harder he worked, the more we lost.  As a result, we fell behind on our mortgage payments and had a hard time catching up.  Eventually, our home went into a foreclosure status.  We contacted our mortgage company and felt that the Lord was going to work it out.  As of several weeks ago, the status of our mortgage was that our request for homeowner's assistance was still being processed.

Fast forward to two weeks ago.  I received no communication from the mortgage company, but received a letter from a lawyer that stated we had to pay $96,437.55 before November 7, plus any additional fees since the letter, if we wanted to keep our home.  Otherwise, it goes to the highest bidder on the 7th.

Immediately, we started asking the Lord to show us what to do.  We were convicted to walk around our property every day for 7 days, praying.  We walked around the property 7 times on the last day.  Personally, on the 7th day, I felt like I had already prayed for this situation so much that no words had been left unsaid.  Romans 8:26 came to mind:  "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words."  I decided that on the 7th day I would simply thank God for all the good that he has poured into our lives.   As I walked around, he reminded me of so many times when He has done the impossible.  As I thanked him I would say it aloud, "with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)     I thanked him that when it seemed I might never be a mom, he had different plans.  "With God all things are possible."  I thanked him that although Iliana faced obstacles that threatened her life even before she was born, his plan was that she live.  "With God all things are possible."  I thanked him that when I prayed for him to show me he had not forgotten her, or myself and the difficulties of having a differently abled child, she learned to hold a bottle that very minute.  "With God all things are possible."  I thanked him that although there was a time when a doctor said to me that Iliana's disease was starting to  shut her body down and we, her parents, needed to decide how long/far we were willing to intervene to keep her alive, his will was that she live.  "With God all things are possible."  I thanked him that when we needed a car for our family, he has provided for that need.  FOUR TIMES.  "With God, all things are possible."  Over and over, he was reminding me of how he had been not only gracious to answer our prayers, but was walking with us in every difficult circumstance.  I finished that day realizing how much the Lord has done for our family and believing that nothing can interfere with the will of God.  Win or lose, keep the house or not, we would give him glory.

Dwight decided to tell Reece and Marisa what was happening.  He didn't want them to be in the dark about the situation and wanted them to have the opportunity to see God at work.  They were devastated.  As much as we have griped and complained about living in our small house, all four of us were now begging and pleading with God to allow us to keep it.  We have used their moments of fear to point them to God's word and remind them of how good God is.  We want them to look back on this time for the rest of their lives and be reminded that God is very real and we can trust Him with our lives.

So, why am I saying all of this now?  Well, win or lose, how can God receive glory if you don't know about it?  We are asking that you pray with us from now until November 6.  We will be praying at 7am and 7pm each day.  We strongly believe in the power of prayer.  Please pray with us that we will understand clearly what God wants us to do.  If you are led to help financially, there is a link to a Paypal account.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you in advance for the prayers for our family.  A verse that God has given me and I say daily is "Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and be constant in prayer." Romans 12:12

With God ALL things are possible,
Dwight and Litka
Reece, Marisa, Iliana, Mia, Sofia, and Bryce