Life

I want to share some things that have been happening in my life, lately. Things have not always gone exactly as planned, but God has a way of working things out for His glory and my good. Things for the last 2 years have been pretty stressfull. At my previous employer, we experienced almost 3 years of lay-offs and cut backs. I watched many of my peers, colleagues, and team members receive lay-off notices. During that time, I was struggling. Sometimes, it was pretty tough. Each time I went through a tough spot, I would ask God to help me, but I wasn't sure that He would.
I have not ever, that I can remember, doubted that God could do anything thing that He wants to do. My problem, however, was trusting Him to help me. It wasn't a matter of could He, it was a matter of would He. I must be a slow learner, because I have faced the same battle over and over many times over the past few years, although it was a little different each time. This time, I have come to realize that God WILL take care of me and my family. I have had many saints from church give me encouragement and I knew that they were praying for me. Alhough this helped, it was not enough.
A few years ago, God promised me that if I would "seek first the kingdom of God and His rightessness; all these things would be added unto me." (my rendition of Matthew 6:33) I have tried to always keep my end of that bargain, although I have needed some help and forgiveness along the way. Then, a few months ago, when I was pretty discouraged, God asked me if I would trust Him enough to leave my job. I thought that over for a long time and was not really sure what all that meant for me. I told the Lord that in Him, only, could I trust. He told me that the issuesthat had me bothered, would not bother me for long. he told me a fewmore things, which left me wondering what was in store.
During this time, I started looking for another job. It was a long process, and, at times, confusing. I finally got to the point that I could say from my heart that in God alone was all my hope. I came to realize that if I was to amount to anything, it would be only because of Him. That was a few months ago, but long story short, God gave me a new job, a new hope, and the assurance that He was on my side! I praise God for His help! This does not mean that all my troubles are gone, but it does mean that I know God is leading and providing for me.
One thing that God has been dealing with me on is outreach. I have been burdened and bothered because of a lack of seeing true growth in our church. I don't mean in numbers but in souls. I have a burden to reach out to others although I don't know where to start. Last Friday night, my pastor spoke about praying for rain after the fire fell (referencing Elijah on Mount Carmel when God sent fire and consumed te sacrifice. The job was still not over till the rain came.) I saw that message as my answer, I must seek God's directon and depend on Him to guide me in this area. I guess the take away from this post is that God cares for us and will take care of us, if we trust in Him fully.