Houses, decisions and where do we want to be?

My wife and I went looking at houses this weekend, partially because our lease is up on our apartment (and we're very low on storage space in it) and partially because we were bored. We found a nice little 2 bedroom, 2 bath number with a good sized yard and a lot of updates. The owner was something of a handyman, so there is some nice woodwork, and several rooms have had new drywall & paint in the last year or so. It would still need a little work, but in our price range we're not going to find anything that doesn't. From the numerous crucifixes and the small Mary statuette in the front yard, I gathered that the homeowners are Catholic, which could explain why its priced a bit under the market. He could probably get another 5-10% on it, but he told the realtor he "didn't want to be greedy."

The question for my wife and I is not whether we want the house - it seems like a good deal and would be pretty well suited for the youth ministry. No, the question is how long we are going to be here. Right now I don't think either one of us is partiuclarly happy, with either our church or our social life. We don't feely strongly connected here and there aren't many couples our age. A young-marrieds small group is starting up, so hopefully things will change with that, but right now we don't have any friends. We know plenty of people, but they are mostly the parents of the kids that are in my youth group.

For me, the biggest question is how long can I stick this out? How long before I know this isn't the right place and am satisfied that I can leave? For all its shortcomings, there are some great things happening at this church and it feels like some momentum is starting to build in the youth group. I'm learning areas I need to improve in and am actively seeking to introduce new & challenging ideas to these kids, but I still struggle as to whether or not I'm really cut out for this job, if I'm actually good at it. I don't know if those doubts are warranted or not, but there is so much upheaval in our life right now it is hard not to hear them. Couple that with the issues I have with this church in particular, and my larger seeking for the truth about Christ and His Church, and you've got one confused puppy. (Speaking of which, getting a house would be great because then we could get a dog. I miss my dog. If ever there is a doubt about the goodness of God, just look at a dog and be encouraged.)