OUT OF THE BLUE

Out Of The Blue by Keith Giles

The other day I received a very unexpected, but very necessary, word of encouragement from God by way of a friend.

I was at home, trying to stay busy while my wife and two sons were away on vacation, and searching desperately for a new job in the meantime, when my cell phone rang.

It was my friend Susan, who I had not spoken to in just about a year. Years earlier, when I had gone to work for Vineyard Music Group to launch their brand-new wholesale department, Susan had been the first sales rep to join the team. Over the next three years we would work closely together and become good friends.

Still, I was shocked to get a call from her, especially on my cell phone since I wasn’t sure how she’d gotten the number. Wendy and I had moved recently from Tustin to Orange and our home phone number had been changed. My cell number was one I’d had for only a year or so, so getting a call from Susan was a surprise.

After a brief time of small-talk, Susan told me why she was calling. She said she had been praying that God would make her an encouragement to someone. As she was reading her Bible, she came across Deuteronomy 8:7-10 and immediately thought of me, so she began to search around to see if she could find my phone number.

As I listened to Susan, she began to read this verse out loud to me. “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land- a land with streams and pools of water…a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing…”

It wasn’t until I told Susan what we were going through that she even had any idea how appropriate her verse was to our situation. I told her about how I’d been out of work since the end of June. I told her how Wendy and the boys were away on vacation, leaving me alone in the house for two and a half weeks, to search for a new full-time job.

God had spoken to me, through a friend, and through His word, at a time when I really needed to hear some encouragement. Over the last few weeks, I have returned to this verse again and again to remind myself that God is near and that His intention is to bless me and to lead me to a better place.

So far, I’ve submitted applications and sent resumes to countless organizations. I’ve contacted friends, acquaintances, and total strangers seeking leads on new jobs. I’ve registered with two different temporary agencies (and neither one has called me back about an assignment).

I’ve posted my resume at Monster.com, searched for jobs on two different Non-Profit Job Search Engines, and sent out my resume to jobs I found listed on Craig’s List.

Yesterday, for the first time in my life, I applied for Unemployment.

I am officially out of ideas. I have done everything I know how to do and so far I have nothing to go on.

What is it that God is trying to say to me? What am I supposed to do next? I have no idea.

Wendy and I have been through something similar to this once before when I was laid off from Vineyard Music after three and a half years. I was out of work for over a year and a half. I pray that this time around the time spent searching for employment is much shorter.

Until we discover the will of God in all of this, I will continue to seek God’s face. I will continue to trust in Him alone. I will hold on to the promise that He intends to bless me and to bring me into “…a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing..”

He is our only hope. In Him will we trust.

Conversatio Morem!
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