Back in early September, I walked into a job interview
for a Canadian company that I knew nothing about. After spending the last six
years working for an oil distributor as an outside salesman, I was ready to
move on to something new but had no idea what God had in front of me. I just
knew that it was time for a change as I had grown incredibly frustrated with
where I was at and came to the conclusion that I had to move on.
As I walked into the lobby of the hotel where the
interview was to be held I was greeted at the door by a man with a French accent.
After we grabbed some coffee and headed outside to the
patio to talk, he said to me “do me a favor, take off the tie. I understand you are showing respect by
dressing up, but this is not going to be a typical interview; we are going to
have more of a casual and relaxed conversation.” I said, “Ok, no problem” and proceeded to remove my
tie.
As we began to talk, I knew right away that this man
was very different. He had no air about him, no arrogance, and no wall up. He
was incredibly transparent and was just himself in the moment. And I knew
within ten minutes of sitting down and speaking with him that I wanted to work
for him. We just seemed to click in our philosophies of business and approach
to life in general. It was a poignant moment in my life that I will never
forget.
After an hour and a half, as I left the interview, I
prayed “Lord, if this is what you have for me, then open every door. And if
it’s not, then close the door and open a different one. I only want to be where
YOU want me to be, and for whatever reason YOU have.”
Needless to say, I accepted the position and have been
on the job now for close to two months. Over those last two months, I have
experienced a tremendous amount of change.
In many conversations with friends and family and
colleagues, before, during and after the process, they have all said the same
thing, “I get it, you weren’t happy and needed to move on.” But it really
wasn’t about me being happy. I reached a point of being unfulfilled in what I
was doing every day. I recognized that despite not wanting to leave the
comfort-ability of my job, God was leading me on to where HE wanted me to be.
Furthermore, I believe that happiness is a byproduct
of obedience. And in all honesty, I have felt at times, tremendously
overwhelmed with all that I have had to learn and understand with this new
position.
With that being said, God does not call us to be
happy. He calls us to be holy. And holiness requires refinement. But sometimes,
we get hung up on pursuing happiness, instead of pursuing holiness. And
holiness is ultimately what God desires for us because it is for our
betterment, and eventually, makes us more like Him.
I am now part of a team of ten people that serve the
Western Region of the US for this company and out of those ten, I have
confirmed that five of us are believers. I’m not sure about the remaining five;
one of those being the gentlemen I spoke of earlier, with whom I initially interviewed
with for my new position. Nevertheless, I believe that God has strategically
placed me where I am, at this time, for HIS purpose, regardless of MY happiness
(although I can say that I am very happy in this position), and that fills my
heart with joy and anticipation for the harvest that I know will come for the
Kingdom.
Back in late 2015, during initial conversations with
Jerry and Plum regarding my ordination with HRM, Jerry conveyed to me that God
was showing him that Serena (my wife) and I were to be “marketplace
missionaries” given that we currently work in the business sector and that God
has strategically placed us here for His ultimate purpose and glory. Since
taking this job, God has placed a tremendous burden on my heart for my boss. He
is an amazing individual who already has a testimony of some extraordinary things
that have happened to him but has no idea that those things were God ordained
or sovereign.
I find it no coincidence that we are currently
studying in the book of Jonah at our church this month. Now, we all know the
story of Jonah, but I have learned some new things recently that are directly
applicable to this situation.
First, the book of Jonah mirrors itself within its
four chapters by replicating in that last two chapters what has transpired with
the first two.
Jonah hears from the Lord, he then responds to that
(not in a good way), and then is reflective of what has transpired. Then, God
speaks to him again, he responds, and is reflective of what God’s response is
to Nineveh.
We know by being students of the Word, that whenever
something is mentioned more than once or is repeated in theme or storyline,
this is a moment when God is trying to get our attention and speak to us.
Secondly, the city of Nineveh was actually a metal
refinery. (insert raised eyebrow here). Yes, God was calling Jonah to a
refinery! But, it is no accident that he was also trying to refine Jonah in the
process of calling him there. Lastly, Jonah was perfectly ok with what God was
saying about Nineveh, and wanted that as well, he just didn’t want to be the
one to deliver the message of God to Nineveh. As my brother Jim often says; “we
need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.” In other words, wherever God
is calling us, and whatever He is calling us to do, it’s probably not going to
be comfortable. And we need to be ok with that.
We live in a dark world that grows darker by the hour.
But, we are light bearers. And more importantly, we are HIS light bearers that
will illuminate this world for the Kingdom of God wherever we go and whatever
we do!
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