“The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in His way;” – Ps 37:23
What a privilege that we can be in right standing with God as followers of Christ, who paid for our sins and covers us with His forgiveness through grace, when we repent of our sin.
It has been a while since I wrote a blog regarding my personal journey with God. The last number of weeks were exciting for us, though filled with some uncertainty about a decision that we had to make.
Since I decided to make a major life change in 2013 (which is described in my book), my wife and I have become used to making decisions on the bottom line. With God’s direction we have acted with discipline when spending to pursue our goals, become debt free, be good stewards and complete the journey that we believe God put us on. The Father’s guidance always provided and also directed us to what we needed and what was essential or useful for our everyday life and personal ministry – NOT our desires. Making a large purchase under the current circumstances, for what could be a possible future need, is not within that framework.
My wife and I spent some time together window shopping at a local car dealership. We had no intent of buying anything at the time. A friendly missions orientated salesman tracked us down and during conversation we spotted an off-road vehicle that both myself and my wife had a fondness for. Since we were not in the market, we soon left with a business card. Later I noticed that the salesman’s phone number ended in 67 (can mean supernatural messenger, Biblically) and decided to look at the vehicle online. It had XX17 miles on it.
In my book explain that I asked God to speak to me through the number 7. On my journey with God, 27 (related to faith, discernment and the writing of my first book) and 47 (related to Kingdom, Reign and my resignation from my career) are significant. When I made the life-change and left my career, I picked up a new personal mobile phone line, which was assigned with a random number ending in 47. I thought the vehicle with XX17 miles was worth following up on.
We arranged to go for a test drive; the map app showed 7 miles and 17 minutes (717) from our home to the dealership. “Ok then”, I thought to myself. When I got into the driver’s seat of the vehicle, I noticed that the next service was due at 7777 miles.
After much mental wrestling, research, analysis and prayer we decided, to be obedient, and attempt to buy this vehicle at a price that was fair. This didn’t come easy as the presentations about the yearly forecast for the value of vehicles and economy indicated that it would be a risky time to buy. I wanted to put the whole effort on ice but God answered with the verse of the day which plainly stated, forget the economy on this one, “Trust in Me”.
We proceeded with confidence BUT were ultimately disappointed in not being able to negotiate an acceptable (responsible) price.
I thought that I made a mistake and strolled through the house to process what happened. I ended up staring at the solar system display, it showed 47% and 4.7A. I felt God’s presence “I got this, trust Me”. Soon after, the exact same vehicle in another city came to my attention. It had 17700 miles on with VIN ending in XXX717. Our local friends inspected the vehicle and I subsequently contacted the dealership. The phone number of the salesman was XXX47. We decided we should at least go and investigate this opportunity even after the confusing first round experience. At the same time, the next day opened up on our work schedules. Along the route, I had to pull over for a restroom stop. The store number at the gas station was 247.
After completing the necessary due diligence at the dealership, it was time for the uncomfortable point when we were about to talk money. At this moment, I received a phone call from overseas regarding a matter related to my late mother and had to take it. I asked the salesman to come up with his best price before briskly excusing myself from the room. During our road trip I planned my strategy and what the price was that would be acceptable to me. Instead of being there for this important moment to make my stand, God removed me from the process at the time of implementation.
The salesman presented his price when I returned …… it was $XXXXX.47 and almost exactly what I thought would be possible to achieve during negotiation! I was stunned and I suspect my silent stare at the sheet of paper made the salesman uncomfortable. He started talking, and basically repeated word for word what I discussed with my wife earlier (on the way) about what I believed was important to negotiate and what was not. I asked for a further discount, alongside a discussion of how we could still make this a win-win transaction for both parties. My request was approved and we ended up settling on a price that I determined was my budget several weeks prior (before the fog of war). God is good!
When the vehicle was ready to be picked-up, I got in the driver seat and set the navigation destination for our house. The display read 147 miles. On the road, I paged through the information screen behind the wheel, it showed 47 hours of driving since last reset. Subsequently I purchased an OEM accessory (which I wasn’t sure about) to add what I felt was required functionality to the vehicle. On the box was the prominent original sorting center no, J-47. I did some work on the vehicle to install the accessory and purchased some more small items, time stamp 10.47 – order no 70. I also purchased some tools at another store #547. The original window sticker showed the factory order number (VON) was X4777, I discovered this on the same day I opened our water bill with $47.77 due. I thought to myself, “Living Water?” or are we going to need the vehicle because of water….
When God communicates this clearly, I assume there will be some purpose to the direction. The past nine odd years God mostly directed through 27 (discernment, faith) including the vehicle we purchased 7 years ago to serve our business operations, after its predecessor got totaled by a truck that ran a stop sign. It was uncommon to be directed by 47 (Kingdom, reign) which makes me cherish it so much more. (Maybe because I am 47 years old)
Update 02/24/2023: We received the state assigned plates for our vehicle a month later – XXX-XX47.
God blessed us with a vehicle that is not only useful but fun this time. Where this will lead, I don’t know, although I have some ideas. What is important, is taking the next step, as we continue to strive to live by the Spirit and highly value God’s love. I enjoyed applying the principles that I laid out in my book in seeking to hear from God, which often is a process of praying, worshiping, listening, acting, assessing, adjusting and verification by Holy Spirit. This methodology is described with a flow chart contained in Chapter 16 of Ever Present Communicator: Engaging with a Dynamic God.
God is alive and Jesus Christ communicates with His followers today. The inheritance of the flowers of Christ is the Lord. God’s Kingdom is near. If you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and savior, go before Him and pray this prayer.
Have a blessed week.
Post Script (for the sleuths):
The last chapter in my book (written 2014) allude to a time that would come when we would really need to depend on God’s guidance daily. A time when we could not depend on the pillars of society for guidance. We would need to be able to communicate with God or hear from Holy Spirit through Christ Jesus and Live in the Spirit. This is the main reason why I believe God placed it on my heart to write Ever Present Communicator, for normal everyday people. A couple of years ago a friend sent me a video discussing 717 in relation to the end times. It was compelling and I shared it with my family at the time. Soon after, an unforeseen encounter and the address of a solar installation company, prompted me to assemble a backup solar power system for our home. The company address was 717 XXX Street. Now, we were led to buy an off-road capable vehicle with VIN XXX717. Seems to be a pattern here – you decide. (17 on its own often relates to victory over trials or the enemy Biblically)