Healing at 30k Feet
Unemployed. Its such an uncomfortable word. Hearing it could make a person think of Biff Loman or George Costanza. The visualization of someone who is unemployed is seldom positive, though admittedly it can sometimes be neutral.
Nearly 30 million Americans have faced unemployment at some point in their lives.
And for the past 89 days, I’ve been one of them.
There are big questions that go through your mind when you’re unemployed.
How are we going to make it?
How long is this going to last?
How did I get here?
These questions are joined by big statements.
Wow, there are a whole lot of possibilities ahead.
Ahhh minus the threat of poverty, not working is actually kind of nice.
OH MY GOODNESS THIS IS THE END OF EVERYTHING.
I knew when I was in trouble when in the midst of a newfound and intentionally unnamed hobby, one of my daughters said “dad, you need a job!”
What could I say but “I know!”
Yesterday I was on a plane, which is where the picture came from. The Bible says the heavens declare the glory of God. That picture screams out how great and awesome and majestic God is. He is marvelous, spectacular, stupendous, and more.
With all this in mind, here is the big learning from this experience.
Perspective matters.
Do you know what happened when I left my previous job? Very little. Everyone there kept going. My department continued. My former colleagues got up for work the next day and lived their lives. It caused me to ask if the early mornings and late nights spent working even mattered. Was there meaning in the little things that often went unseen? Was my impact valued? I suppose it all depends on my point of view. From the business side of things, I sincerely don’t know how that work was viewed, and to a point I don’t care. I can’t care because I will never have answers.
What I do know is I believe there is a God, He is real, and He wrote a book. In that book, there is a letter to a group of people called the Colossians. Chapter 3, verse 23 reads:
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters
Who did I do this work for? Did I do it for God or for people? The answer is yes, but losing the job forces a shift in perspective. If I did it for God, I can leave it with Him and move on. If I did it for people, I will attempt to stir up validation.
Another verse from the Bible is found in 1 Corinthians 4:2-4
Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.
Oh how I want to yield to the judgment of people to form my perspective, and that includes judging myself. Was I faithful? This verse says to minimize what others think and to maximize what God thinks. He is the one who judges. He determines what matters. In fact, in the Old Testament Biblical book of Ecclesiastes, the author writes;
What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless. A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?
Once again, it all goes back to God. He is the source of enjoyment. You can interpret the rest of the verses which I see as pointed and relatable.
Now, by the grace of God I find myself sitting poolside early morning south of Miami. Today I will see the ocean. A good friend told me the ocean brings healing. I’m pretty sure that’s Biblical. Psalm 42 reads;
My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar. Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.
As the waves and breakers sweep over me today, I have three prayers.
As the resume count climbs into the 40’s, may God open up a local or remote opportunity.
Might the new side ventures He has put on my heart be carried out faithfully.
May He continue to refresh my soul and allow me to know Him in ways I never imagined possible
No matter what elevation you find yourself at today, would you join me in these prayers?