July 1, 2021

Brothers and sisters in Christ…

I feel impressed by the Holy Spirit to post the following testimony.  Over the years as a child of the Most High God, I am constantly entreating Him: O my Beloved, I am Yours, and You are mine!  I have sought Your Face with all my heart, Lord; be gracious to me according to Your promise!  Father…show me Your Glory!  Stretch out Your hand to heal, to restore, to deliver, to save, to perform miraculous signs and wonders through the Name of Your Divine Son Jesus!  Bring Glory to Your Name, and bring Your blessings and Your salvation before the souls of Man!  In the presence of the congregation, I will proclaim Your Great Name and Your Mighty Power according to all that my eyes shall see!  Surely, I will enter Your gates with thanksgiving, I will come into Your courts with praise!  I have gazed attentively upon You in the sanctuary and I have beheld Your Power and Your Glory. Formerly, my ears had only heard of You; but now my eyes have seen You and have seen Your Glory.  I will therefore proclaim Your Great Name and Your Mighty Power according to all my eyes have seen…because the souls of men need to know how great You are!  Hallelujah!

DIVINE APPOINTMENT

Obedience to the Leading of the Spirit Brings the Blessings of God;
Prayer in Accordance With God’s Will Moves the Hand of God.

After the Lord had miraculously raised my mother off her death-bed in July 2004… just as He had told me three times He was going to do, “I am going to raise up your mother” [read Divine Miracle on this website: https://preservechristianfamily.org/2017/04/25/divine-miracle/ ]…
in Fall 2006 I began asking Him about purchasing a home of my own here in Florida. As I began diligently searching, my continual request before the Lord was, “Please show me plainly, clearly, beyond the shadow of any doubt whether I am to do this and, if so, which one You would have me purchase.” That prayer was the intense desire of my heart; I was asking for the confirmation of the Holy Spirit before proceeding with doing anything at all.

By December I had screened out [on paper] literally hundreds of condominium units, and after personally looking at three that seemed most suitable, one stood out as the best by far. So I began inquiring of the Lord, “How will I know whether this is the one You would have me purchase? I need to be sure beyond the shadow of any doubt.” I was determined not to proceed unless I had a clear confirmation from the Spirit. It was during my times of intense inquiry before the Lord that He told me the exact price I was to offer for this condo unit… which was 18% below an already reasonably low offering price.

The usual real estate game was on, the seller counter-offering a lower price, yet still significantly higher than mine. I really liked that particular condo unit, but in obedience to the Lord I held fast to the exact price He gave me to offer. The seller continued counter-offering even lower prices but, much to their exasperation, I did not budge. Finally, they made a “final offer”…just a token $2,000 higher than my original offer. I really struggled with that, and was sorely tempted to accept it. I agonized before the Lord because I liked that condo unit very much, and it was a great price…but He gave me no freedom to accept their offer. Finally, in absolute surrender to the leading of the Holy Spirit, I held fast. I had gotten to the place of unquestioning child-like obedience, realizing that the only way I would really know if it was the Lord’s will that I purchase this property was to hold fast. It no longer mattered to me whether I lost this opportunity or not; all that really mattered was that my heart remain lovingly and joyfully joined with His will.

Six months later in June 2007, the President of the Condominium Association to which my newly purchased condo belonged suddenly had to relocate, and I was asked to consider taking over as President. I again inquired of the Lord, and the Holy Spirit clearly, beyond the shadow of any doubt, led me to accept this position of responsibility and authority. Over the past 14 years as President, He has blessed everything He has directed my hands to touch. He has shown me over and over again in the affairs of the Condominium: Trust in Me with an unwavering child-like trust that in My will for your life and in the work I have given you to do…in the ministries I have given to you and their responsibilities…My indwelling Spirit will indeed enable you to fulfill your responsibilities in accordance with My plans, purposes, and will, and in a manner that is well-pleasing in My sight. [1 Sam 16:13; 2 Sam 7:1-8:18]

The Lord has faithfully honored His Word Personally given to me as His appointed leader: Trust Me with an unwavering child-like trust in all things I allow to touch your life, and My indwelling Spirit will indeed intervene in those affairs to Personally do whatever is beyond your human capabilities and capacities to do, in accordance with My own plans, purposes, and will. [Josh 6:1-20; 2 Kings 18:17-19:35] There have been a number of situations that would have proven to be devastating to our Condominium Association and seemed to be beyond any hope of resolution…until the Lord Himself intervened out of the clear blue to do what was beyond my human capabilities and capacities to do:

• A defiant unit owner acquired a large and dangerous dog, claiming his teenage daughter’s psychiatrist deemed it necessary for her felt-sense of protection and safety. The Association was facing multiple tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees to fight this…until the Lord intervened on our behalf through the individual’s father-in-law who, in no uncertain terms, told them to get rid of the dog. Praise be to the Lord God Almighty; You alone do marvelous deeds!
• An investor bought one of the units, and defiantly leased it out to a Corporation that was going to use it as a rooming house for its minimum wage workers. When our Association strongly opposed him, the investor was adamant with all kinds of threats, including legal action…until the Lord intervened and the investor contacted me out of the clear blue with a complete change of attitude, asking that we meet together and resolve the conflict amicably…which we did. He signed a legal agreement not to renew the 6 month lease in return for our allowing the lease to stay in place until the end of the 6 month term. Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; Your greatness no one can fathom!
• Two young girls rented one of our units, and it quickly became apparent that they were dealing in drugs. Residents observed a continual flow of people from nearby half-way houses coming to and leaving from their unit. The situation seemed so hopeless; I knew it would take months of legal proceedings and documented proof to get them evicted…until the Lord intervened and led me to write a very strong letter, handed to them on a Friday night and giving them until Monday morning to vacate the premises or I would have the police at their door. Although I knew it was a bluff, it was enough for the Lord to use to frighten them away and vacate the unit! Blessed be the Name of the Lord forever and ever! For wisdom and might are Yours!
• The owners of two of our units, over a 3 year period of time, defaulted on paying their quarterly maintenance payments. This was going to be a financial strain on our Association as our budgeted operating expenses are funded by our quarterly maintenance fees…until the Lord intervened on our behalf. After several years the bank foreclosed on the first property, and reimbursed us for all unpaid maintenance fees, all of our legal fees, and interest on all the previously unpaid balances. On the second property, the Association foreclosed and became the owner, renting out the unit for rental income until the bank eventually foreclosed and became the owner. They also then reimbursed us for all the unpaid maintenance fees to date, all of our legal fees, and interest on all the previously unpaid balances. Now to You Who is able to do immeasurably more than all I ask or imagine, according to Your power that is at work within me…to You be glory throughout the eternal ages!
• A rental couple decided to breed dogs in their unit, and then sell the puppies…a clear violation of Condominium rules. Adjacent unit owners were distraught by the continual noise, but the couple remained defiant and uncooperative…until the Lord intervened and the Association took legal action that finally led to their literal eviction. The unit owner was ordered by the Court to reimburse the Association for all of our legal fees as well. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare Your praise?!  
• One of the original SWCA Condo owners…for them it was always used as a rental unit…decided in 2017 to have their adult daughter, a child with a mental disability, live there.  They submitted an application to the Board, but refused to provide the necessary information that our legal counsel advised us that we needed in this situation.  We told them we would not be able to make a decision to give our approval without the information requested.  They proceeded to file a disability discrimination lawsuit against us through the Palm Beach County Office of Economic Opportunity.  Then the Lord intervened on behalf of our Condo Association, which led to the lawsuit being dismissed because it was found that  there was no legal basis supporting it!  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of my Lord forever!
• Two different unit owners over the course of years, who were renting out their units, defiantly defaulted on paying their quarterly maintenance fees. This was a cause of financial distress to the Association…until the Lord intervened on our behalf. We were able to take legal action, and the Court directed the tenants of these two units to pay their monthly rent directly to the Association until all unpaid maintenance fees, legal fees, and interest had been reimbursed in full. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice!
• Our elevator maintenance provider was way overcharging the Association for their monthly service contract. The Spirit led me to another service provider for less than half the cost, and when I entered into a contract with them, I was faced with the threat of a lawsuit against us for breach of contract…until the Lord intervened on our behalf, and I was able to negotiate a very favorable settlement with them. Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things! In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all! 
• When the plant nursery was installing 150 feet of young coco-plum hedges bordering our property, I had arranged with the supervisor for his workers to add the proper amount of sulfur I had purchased to enhance the soil. Near the end of their planting, I noticed that the workers had applied four times the safe amount of sulfur, which would unavoidably burn the tender roots and cause sure death of the plants…until the Lord intervened on our behalf, and miraculously protected the plants so that none of them were the least bit affected! Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in Heaven and Earth is Yours!
• On an Easter Sunday while at my mother’s condo, ten minutes away from my condo, there had been ongoing hours of continual torrential rain, and all the streets were badly flooded. Suddenly, the Spirit of God warned me about the pool at my condominium, that it was about to overflow and flood the nearby ground floor units. Nobody would have noticed…until it was happening. Somehow my SUV made it through the flooded streets to my condo, and sure enough, the pool was on the very brink of overflowing. I was able to turn on the pump and open the back flow valve in the continuing torrential rain, and avert a real flooding disaster. Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy Name!
• On three separate occasions over the past eleven years, two different individuals who did not want me to remain as President of the Association launched vicious attacks against my character and name. Through it all, I did not retaliate nor make any threats. Instead, I entrusted myself to the One who judges justly. In the end, He brought me through as more than a conqueror and with overwhelming victory! You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of my Lord forever!

Our Condominium complex consists of 24 units in two 3 story buildings, with a very large 55 vehicle parking lot. The units are large: twenty one 1300 sq. ft. two bedroom two bath units + screened in balcony, and three 2100 sq. ft. three bedroom two bath units + screened in balcony. We have a swimming pool as well. Our annual budget is $82,044: quarterly maintenance fees are $800 for the 2 bedroom units and $1,237 for the 3 bedroom units.

The Lord has faithfully honored over and over again His Word Personally given to me as His appointed leader over the affairs of the Condominium: Obedience to the leading of the Spirit brings the blessings of God. Prayer in accordance with the will of God moves the hand of God. Through obedience to the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit, here are the blessings He has poured out upon us over the past 14 years: We have spent $320,000 in projects over and above our operating budget, with no increase in quarterly maintenance fees and no assessments. The quarterly maintenance fees today are the same as they were in 2006! This is what the Spirit of the Lord has done…all in answer to prayer, in accordance with God’s will, moving the hand of God:

• Led me to an insurance agency specializing in Condominium policies, who not only maintained our current coverages and deductibles but also added coverages we did not have…while reducing out annual premiums from $30,000 to $15,000. Let the Name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore! 
• Led me to various replacement maintenance providers [lawn, elevator, pool, pest control] at significant cost savings while greatly improving service. For example, we obtained a new landscaper as a result of the Spirit prompting me one day to “Look out from your balcony”…and there in front of me was a landscaper’s truck with phone number, who would then become our new landscaper. Now, our God, I give You thanks, and praise Your glorious Name!
• Enabled me through these various cost savings to increase our budgeted contributions to Reserves from $6,000 per year to $27,500 annually…with no increase in our Condo owner’s quarterly maintenance fees. I will extol You, Lord, at all times; Your praise will always be on my lips!
• Led me to a contractor to completely refurbish our pool and put in new tile for $6,000 vs quotes up to $15,000. As you might have suspected…this small local contractor was a family owned business of Christian brothers. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits!
• Led me to a local elevator company to completely refurbish our passenger elevator…brand new mechanics, cab interior, and exterior landing stations…for $60,000 vs the $103,000 quotes from the three major elevator companies. All of the quotes were for the exact same scope of work. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His Name together!
• Led me to a roofing company that made available a ten year semi-annual roof replacement/roof maintenance program for $5,600 per year…vs quotes for complete roof replacement, all in the $110,000 range. Under the terms of our contract, they will replace 15% of our roof each year, resulting in a completely new roof over a period of 6 ½ years. Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; His love endures forever!
• Led me to a quality balcony concrete restoration contractor, and balcony screen enclosure contractor, to completely repair and refurbish our twenty four balconies at a cost of $110,000…paid for entirely out of Reserves, with no assessment. Blessed be Your glorious Name; may Your Name be exalted above all blessing and praise!
• Led me to a plant nursery from whom to purchase, and plant, 150 feet of border hedges at 1/3 the cost of our other quotes. Blessed be the Name of the Lord!

• Led me to have our landscaper design and install a beautiful garden atrium and decorative flowing water fountain, which has become our Condominium centerpiece. The Lord provided a beautiful $800 water fountain/pot for just $150! I will exalt You, my God the King; I will praise Your Name for ever and ever!
• While inquiring of God’s Holy Spirit, I began asking Him to intervene on our behalf concerning our Condominium Master insurance policy renewal premium for 2018 [insurance premiums are a major concern; they represent 1/3 of our entire budget], and cause it to come in unchanged!  We had an unsettled liability claim against our policy, and I was told two weeks prior by our insurance agent that it looks like the best quote was going to be $1,500 higher than the current expiring year.  Well…shortly thereafter, as I sat with our agent reviewing the finalized 2018 renewal policy, she got to the premium page, and announced, “I am happy to say that we were able to get the renewal at the same premium as last year.”  I was ecstatic; another little token of my Father’s love…granting even insignificant and trivial requests for no other reason than just because His child asked!
• The following year, for the 2019 renewal premium, the prognosis was much worse. I felt in the Spirit that there was going to be a significant increase that year because the property appraisal, required every 3 years, came in 25% higher than the prior appraisal in 2015.  Little did I know at the time that the renewal premium was actually going to come in $3,500 higher!  Yet even before I made a request of the Lord to intervene again on our behalf…a month earlier He had already begun orchestrating His Divine intervention on our behalf. Out of the clear blue, He had an unknown [to me] insurance agency send me an unsolicited E-mail introducing themselves, and requesting our allowing them to quote our insurance renewal.  I met with their agent…who was one of the most knowledgeable insurance agents I had ever met!  I knew later that He was Divinely sent!  He took one look at our property appraisal, and told me it was way too high for our type of buildings.  The Lord prompted me, at the suggestion of this knowledgeable agent, to spend the money to obtain another appraisal…from an appraisal company he recommended.  The new property appraisal came in much lower, with the result that our renewal premium came in $1,000 lower than the expiring policy year…a savings of $4, 500 from the original renewal premium!  Astounding!!  Incredible!!  The Lord in His miraculous intervention gave me $1,000 more than I had asked for!  I was ecstatic!…another little token, again, of my Father’s love, granting even insignificant and trivial requests for no other reason than just because His child asked!
• The prognosis for this year’s premium renewal, for the year 2020, was even worse! The liability claim had been settled for $65,000, and was going to have a major effect on our renewal premium!  Again, I asked the Lord to intervene on our behalf, because this renewal premium could force me to raise the HOA fees for the first time since 2006!  I asked for quotes from one other highly respected insurance agency, as well as from our current agent for the past 13 years.  Just as I was afraid of, the other agent’s renewal quote was $16,500 higher than our current expiring policy!  Shortly thereafter, I met with our current agent for their renewal quote…$11,000 lower than the competition!  I was ecstatic; I am now going to be able to go into 2020 with the same unchanged budget…for the 14th year!
• Led me to quality and cost effective contractors for numerous other projects, including painting our buildings, walkways, and pool deck; parking lot resurfacing; LED security lighting; LED overhead walkway lights; pool plumbing system refurbishing; various landscaping enhancements…all without assessments or increases to quarterly maintenance fees. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live!

Our Condominium has been blessed beyond measure…according to the application of these verses taken from Deut 28:1-14 to our own present day experiences: If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all His commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on Earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God:

• You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
• The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.
• The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land He is giving you.
• The Lord will establish you as His holy people, as He promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the Lord your God and walk in His ways. Then all the peoples on Earth will see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they will fear you.
• The Lord will grant you abundant prosperity in the land He swore to your forefathers to give you. The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of His bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.
• The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them. 

I don’t know whether in the depths of your heart you really believe there is a God in Heaven or not, but this I do know…He continually leads me by His Spirit, and my obedience to His leading has continually brought the boundless blessings of God! [Read John 9:1-38]
I proclaim to you Christ Jesus…the One Who existed from the beginning, from Eternity Past, Whom I have heard with the ears of my own inner being, and have seen with my own spiritual eyes. I have gazed upon Him and have spiritually touched Him with my own hands. He is the Word of Life. His Life is continually being revealed to me; I have seen it and testify to it, and I proclaim to you that He is the One Who is Eternal Life. He always existed with the Father, and is now continually being manifested afresh and anew to me. I proclaim to you what I have personally seen and heard in the depths of my soul, so that you also may enjoy this same fellowship together with us. The fellowship I continually enjoy is with the Father and with His Son, Christ Jesus. I am writing these things so that you also may fully share together with me in this fullness of joy. [1 John 1:1-4]. It is our birth-right as a child of the Most High God!

Holy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcx2O9WXvn8&feature=youtu.be