I Can’t Get No Satisfaction…

At the end of last year, we paid off our house. We could have done it several years ago, but we chose to use our money for others things such as helping our children with some of their college debt.

As we approached the time of paying off our house, I thought about how we would celebrate the event. When I was growing up, I remember seeing movies and television shows that had “mortgage burning parties”; which is an old custom that was the ritual burning of a paid off mortgage document by homeowners.

When the time did come, it seemed very anticlimactic. All we did was send in our check as we had done all of these years and that was it. The calendar turned and life went on…I was happy but we didn’t really get any satisfaction for all of the hard work.

I tried and I tried and I tried….

Over a month had gone by and I still hadn’t heard from the mortgage company confirming that the last payment had been received and we were finalized in our payments.

Cathy and I thought that we should at least get something in writing to show that this day had indeed come to pass; and perhaps have a modified celebration.

So, I called a friend who is a realtor and was informed that they should have sent out a letter of satisfaction (Satisfaction of Mortgage); which is a document signed by the mortgagee acknowledging that the mortgage has been fully paid and that the mortgage is no longer a lien on the property.

The next day I made some phone calls to our mortgage company to make my request.

When I spoke with a representative of the company, I was told that they would send out the letter in a few weeks; and that I would be receiving a refund check of one dollar and ninety-one cents because we had over paid.

In a few weeks I did receive an envelope from the mortgage company that contained the refund check, but no satisfaction…so I tried and I tried and I tried…and made some more calls to ask for my satisfaction.

When I spoke with a representative of the company, she politely asked if she could look into it and call me back.

She called me in an hour or so and told me that they would be sending the satisfaction out in a few weeks…and so I would need to wait to get my satisfaction and then be able to celebrate this passing event…even if it would take place MONTHS after we made the final payment!

I tried and I tried and I tried….

It’s amazing, isn’t it, how when we place undue emphasis on material things they never bring satisfaction; or at least not real satisfaction.

It was a house, a structure that provided shelter from the elements and a place to store our stuff. 

But I didn’t need a Satisfaction letter from a mortgage company to celebrate this event! I could celebrate what was really important…

What was important was the home that we made inside of the house; the memories and celebrations and history that had taken place inside and outside of that house that had become our home.

What was important is that the Lord had been faithful to provide for us. All of the years that we have been in the house, we NEVER missed a house payment; and we were ALWAYS able to replace furnishings including furniture, appliances, remodel rooms, replace the roof, soffits, and fascia.

What was important is that when we wrote the last mortgage payment, I had no income because I had previously resigned from my place of employment. This was very significant because when we originally purchased the home, had no income (as well as no money in the bank).

The day had come and gone and we were thankful.

“And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” (Deuteronomy 8:18 NKJV)