So close-- yet so far

WE GOT AN OFFER ON OUR HOUSE YESTERDAY!!! I've been waiting over three years for this to happen! I took the day off of work yesterday, and Miike also happened to have the day off, so we went shopping and got my car serviced and took care of other random things that we both don't have time to do otherwise.
Back to the offer-- our realtor called me and said that we had an offer, only the number wasn't what we were expecting. A full $24,000 below our asking price or about 18% below. Pretty insulting. So we countered, and heard back late lastnight that the man countered our counter offer and we just put in another counter offer this morning. So, most of yesterday afternoon I was fidgeting and biting my nails and pacing-- just waiting to hear that I could start packing my boxes. Now, we'll have to wait another couple hours or day or two just to hear back again. Ugh. I'm sure he won't like out counter-counter-counter offer (does that exist?!), but it is the absolute lowest we can possibly go. At this price we have to bring in about $15,000 of our own money just to get out of this house! AWWW! Scary. Then we'd have to build up savings for a down payment and then tackle buying a new house. It's such a depressing situation to lose sooooo much money on a house. The only thing that makes us feel good about doing that is how much we'd make up on the other end. Buying so much more house for not so much $$$$.
We're soooooo close-- yet so far away because there's a number that this guy is looking for and we have no idea what it is, and if/when he walks away all my hopes of selling our house vanish-- just like that. We've never gotten an offer on our house, and to be so close to selling it gives me anxiety because I want out!!!!! I want to buy a new house away from neighbors and streets and lights (can you tell I'm a country girl??!) and closer to work.
Everything happens for a reason, right? So, this will work out as God intended. I'm just hoping I agree with His way.
Crossing my fingers and toes and whatever else brings us tons of luck!