ch-ch-ch-changes

Exodus 33:14 And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

This verse has been banging around in my head for the past 10 days -- ever since I got called into the Treasurer's office and informed that my career at IG was over. Just like that. After 8 years, my routine is now all out of whack; it feels strange not to be going there anymore. It took me almost 90 min to get myself packed up and out of there and I still forgot things that I had to go back for. If you've ever been through a layoff, then maybe you understand the fog that I was in.

Since we were leaving for Acadia a few days later, I didn't do anything related to job hunting that first week. Just enjoyed a little extra time with my kids and doing household stuff while they were at daycare & preschool.

Everyone that knows me knows I'm the "worst-case scenario" girl -- I imagine the worst, work really hard to try to keep it from happening, fret about the things I have no control over and then breathe a sigh of relief when reality turns out to be better than I feared. While I still think about what my take on the worst case might look like, I'm finding that this time around I've been able to theologize my way out of the dark place it usually leads me. It involves reminding myself of the things that I believe to be true because of what God tells me about himself. Things like this:

1. He didn't spare his Son for you, so won't He give you everything else that you need in life? (Rom 8:32)

2. God delights in those that hope in Him (Ps 147:11)

3. Everything is ordained and works for my good and God's glory (Rom 8:28)

Besides praying more (Shouldn't I be praying this much all the time?!), I've been reading the story of the Israelites and their exodus out of Egypt, their wanderings in the desert and their journey to the Promised Land. For reasons I won't go into here, I've been identifying with them in their longing for change and their doubts about God's resolve to bring that change about and lead them to a better place. Every time they're facing impossible circumstances and it seems that God has reneged, He uses it to show them how much he loves them, how powerful He really is and that He keeps all of his promises.

So now I'm faced with unemployment at a time when it's harder to get employed and J's business is suffering a slowdown. Already, I see God's provision in that I received a decent severance package, so we're not relying on unemployment benefits to pay the mortgage currently. The rest of the provision has yet to be revealed. I suppose the only way my faith gets tested & strengthened is in these times of uncertainty. I'm so glad that I have a God that doesn't treat me as my sins deserve and knows my struggles and meets me in the midst of them (Ps 103:10-13).

I love the last verse of "All Must Be Well":

We expect a bright tomorrow; All will be well
Faith can sing through days of sorrow, All is well
On our Father's love relying
Jesus every need supplying
Yes in living or in dying
All must be well

Shelby