Yet another change

Man what a year it has been with regards to change for me. since last August I have had 3 jobs taken away from me. The first was last year when the place I had worked at for 18 years was closed by the group that had purchased us 2 years prior and ran it in to the ground. The second was a Youth Ministry job that was part-time and after 8 months it also ended after what we will call a difference in beliefs and ideas for direction of the ministry. Now the place I had been at since my past employer closed has let me go due to financial problems. So 18 years at one place and now 3 job losses in one year talk about a blow to your self esteem. Now with all that out of the way I once again have seen how God takes care of us and truly does not close a door without opening a window. I have had a new opportunity placed before me in the form of a job and even though the next year will be rough for us financially because I will be making considerably less in the long run it will be better for me and my family because of all this company has to offer. I have to admit it is scary making such a change but I know it is time for it to happen. For the last 19 years I have worked in health care ((eye care) and it has always been somewhat unstable and especially the last 10 years or so sometimes wandering if I would get a paycheck and always wandering if the place would close, not to mention no real retirement benefits or ability to move upward. Now I will be working for a fortune 500 company with stability, retirement benefits and advancement opportunities. So here is to this new segment of my life and seeing where it takes me and like I said earlier I have definitely learned that God does have a plan for my life even when it seems like things are falling apart. So my advice. When you here that door slam look for the window that has just opened and through it you will see the great things God has put in front of you.

Great Read

I just finished reading this a couple of weeks ago and loved it. David Gregory has done it once again using descriptions of his characters, figures and events to tell a wonderful story just like he has in the past with Dinner with A Perfect Stranger and Day With a Perfect Stranger. This tale of a young man named Logan who is fresh out of college and looking for a job who applies at Universal Systems and meets the CEO and is offered a position that is his dream job of being a organizational analyst. His assignment? Evaluate each of the 5 levels of the company and report back to the CEO. On each level he finds something different but also they have something in common they all seem to be missing the point of the company and none of them make a profit and this continues until he reaches the 5th level . This is a book for anyone looking for answers about what God is calling them to do. Each of the 5 levels represents a level of faith, and how things such as legalism, apathy, and denominational differences get is the way of Gods purpose for are life and in my opinion he nails a lot problems right on the head. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone searching for Gods purpose in life without a deep theological base.

excitiment

Have you ever had something so exciting going on in your life that you cannot wait to share it with everyone? Well I have one of those things going on right now, but here's the kicker. I cannot share it with everyone right now until a few details are taken care of I and am given the OK to announce it. This is really tearing me up I just want to burst out and tell everyone, but I must wait. The only good thing is I have been able to tell a few people so that is keeping on the ground right now. More to come.

holding on

I seem to be struggling just to hold on to life right now. I recently resigned at the church I was working at part-time as youth director due to some difference in theology and how I felt the program should run. I have come to find that loosing that was harder on me than I expected but at the same time I refuse to change who I am and what I believe just to conform to the desires of others. Now I am faced with another possible change that is pretty major in my life as well as my families life. I just want life to slow down and give me a break from all that has been going on in the last year or so.

Nows the time

Social justice, two words that I feel can change the world. Recently I have been doing a lot of soul searching and decided now is the time for me to act on how I feel on this issue, time to get off my rear and do something. For as long as I can remember I have always had the desire to help others not caring about who they were or where they were from just help them and now that feeling has grown even more. I am tired of picking up a paper or watching the news and hearing how people treat each other or how we just feel that some people are disposable and the way to deal with them is throw them away or put them out of sight. Where is the justice in our own country? I recently read an article in S.I. that compared the life of an Ohio State football player and a homeless man in Columbus and it was just sickening to read the separation in how the two live. The homeless man sleeping in the cold getting up early just to get in line to take a hot shower and get something to eat, the football player waking up in a posh hotel room on game day driving his nice SUV to the stadium and being surrounded by all the luxuries you could want there including steak and chicken dinners. I understand that some will say they are both getting what they have earned but, how can we spend millions if not billions on something like college football and let our fellow humans sleep out in the cold and stand in long lines for a chance to have what we take for granted. So what will or can I do about it? I plan on getting more involved, getting the youth I work with more involved and doing everything I can to make people aware of what social justice means to me. So back to the S.I. article, this is not an indictment of college sports, there are many other areas that the same sort of waste occur and that is what bother me. What better place than our college campuses to teach about social justice and changing our world by just giving up a little of the luxuries we have. I know this seems like another of my rants but so be it, and this is just as much for me as anyone else to get off my rear and do something. The time is now

Thoughts

Due to some recent conversations I have been doing a lot of thinking about life in general and where I am at in it and how are things going. I know a lot of what I am about to write sounds like I may be denying certain events going on or that I am just plain out of the loop but I do not think so. First my own life I often look at my life and feel like man nothing is going right everything is so screwed up and let life get me down, but recently I have tried to change that by identifying what is really a problem and what is perceived. One of the first things I noticed is how I let the negative doom and gloomers around me ruin my day by buying into what they say or how they feel and that has to stop because it is making me miserable. So how do I fix it? Well I have decided for everything they say negative to inject a little positive thought into the conversation and maybe just maybe I will change their day instead of them changing mine. I have also been having a real tug on my heart to do something in the social justice area, I see so much going on in the world that needs to be taken care of but we would rather make up problems or blow small things out of proportion and let the starving, sick and homeless fend for themselves. This is something I need to work on myself because as I said I have been looking at how bad I think things are in my life and have been so busy crying over poor little me that I miss the person in front of me that is truly hurting because they have no job, little food, and soon maybe no roof over their families heads. Well I know this has been a ramble and I do not know if anyone even reads this but I had to get it out.

Finally

I have finally taken time to make another post and cannot believe it has been since September that I have put anything up here. So much has been going on with getting the youth ministry started and planning programs and getting to know the kids and their families it seems like everyday has something planned besides my regular job and school. All in all things are going pretty good though and the new wing is about completed at the Church and everyone is ready for that because it means we will have the space we need to conduct all the programs we need to do. These last few months have really given me a chance to look back on how God has truly blessed me and my family even with the surgeries and motorcycle accidents we have a pretty good life and need to be a little more appreciative of what we have, One last thing anyone who reads this please keep those being affected by the fires in California in your prayers I cannot imagine one what it is like to loose everything but just waiting for it to happen and knowing there is nothing that can be done must be even worse. That is some beautiful area out there and now do to what appears to be the lack any decency of one person setting this thing off thousands of acres of Gods creation are destroyed or in jeopardy.

Why is turning it over so hard for me?

I truly want to turn all things over to God and realize my life would be so much easier If I just let Him lead me through it and listen to His direction. I let know many things that are going on in my life like new job, frustrations with son, and all the other stuff that has been going ruin the good stuff for me. This morning looked at my life and saw all the things that had been bothering me; wife's health and surgery recovery, new office opening, sons being a pain, car problems, A/C going out, and school and thought this is to much. After reviewing things things and praying my view changed to this; Wife is healing, the office is doing okay, I cannot change my son, car and A/C fixed. Now I can concentrate of the good things in life like God helping through all the stuff above and look at the blessings he gives me everyday.

A few observations of what I overheard

This past Monday night I was in the ER with my wife and overheard a few things that just made me think about the world we live in. when we first arrived there was an older lady in the bed next to her who seemed be be longing for attention every couple of minute she was calling for the nurse. at first she was a little annoying but as I thought more about it, all she wanted was a little attention and maybe this was the only time she was getting any in life. On the other side was something more disturbing, a young lady who had been in a car accident. Now at first it seemed like just any other accident you may overhear someone talking about but then things changed. the doctor came in and asked the other person there to leave and then let her have it because her blood and urine work showed signs of amphetamines, opiates, and marijuana. He sternly explained to her how he felt about this and how she had not only pt her own life at risk but the lives of all others on the road at risk. He then went on to explain that if it was not for confidentiality reasons he would turn her into the police on the spot. Net there was and elderly lady who was there for various health reasons and was all alone and the issue of her roommates who where young people may be neglecting or abusing her was being addressed. Now I know it may sound like I was being nosy and eavesdropping but my was was pretty much out of it with the pain killers they had given her and only a curtain separates you and the others so it was almost impossible not to hear what was going on. The thing that bothered me most about this is who reached out to these people after they left did the lonely lady find someone to listen, did the accident with drug problems seek help, and did the elderly lady get the care and safe place to stay she needs. I know what I did was say a prayer for each of these people but should of I did more, could of I did more? My final thought is I did what I could and put them in Gods hand and there more can be done for them than I could ever do, now I just pray they let Him help. Oh and by the way my wife is fine.

time to breathe

Well this has been one of those weeks that i thought would never end. With Mary having surgery and getting ready for things at Church this Sunday (first meeting with youth and speaking in service) and to top it all off I started school again. Saturday will be my day to set back and relax maybe study a little but mainly relax and take a deep breathe. I guess it really has not been that bad when all is said I really love doing what I am doing at Church and school helps me clear my mind and exercise my brain a little. so here is to a little relaxation and enjoyment. The picture is my son Nick with his new toy, pretty sweet eh.

I hope life slows down a little.

So much has been going on in my life oer the past year or so it seems like everyday brings change or something else to drain me. Just a little recap. I have had good friends move away, my place of employment for 17 years closed, I started a new job in an office that is just opening my wife has had carpal tunnel surgery and Saturday had an emergency appendectomy, I started as part time youth pastor and in doing so left the the Church I had been working with youth as a volunteer for 7 years and now another school years is starting for me. As I look back on all these things some of them have really wore me down and others have been dreams come true. i have learned a lot from these things about myself and the great people God has blessed with me in my life and also know that what I have gone through is nothing compared to the trials a lot of people face every day. So with all that said I just want a few months of no change and no health issues for my family, I really need the rest.

Like a little kid

Well tonight I have become even more of a kid or maybe on second thought more of a youth director, I bought a Nintendo Wii. I will probably be up until who knows when. On another note my son Nick got a new Ducati motorcycle today pictures of it later.

A day to reconnect and reflect

With today being my first day off while I wait on my new job to start I decided to take some time and just gaze on Gods glorious creation. I found a wonderful park to set in and eat my lunch and just reflected on the things that have gone on over the past few months and found the blessings hidden in them. I now look forward to the future and all the promise it holds and know more now than at anytime in my life that God will see me through anything that occurs.

saying goodbye

Today was the day to tell the youth and the congregation at CUMC that I was leaving and it was a little hard to do. I did find out one thing though and that is keeping a secret in Church is almost impossible most of the kids and a good part of the congregation already new. I will miss seeing them every Sunday but look forward to getting to know my new Church family at Crestview U.B. I just kept reminding the and myself this is not goodbye but I just will not see you as often.

Well is just a little over 1 hour from now I will be leaving this office for the last time. I have been working here 17 longs years and seen some good times and been through some very stressful hard times but we always seemed to survive until now. I though it was apporpriate when I woke this morning that it was gloomy and rainy because that was the feeling I had when I awoke to come here this one last time. So today I say goodbye to a place where I have spent almost 75% of my life, a place that has seen my family grow and a place I have made many friends. Goodbye Lafayette Eye Center goodbye.

Skit Guys in Napoleon Dynamite

This is a great video from the Skit Guys with some help from Napolean Dynamite.

Well it's down to one more day at the place I have worked for the past 17 years. Right now I do not seem to be to sad or upset or anything like that maybe that will change as tomorrow comes or maybe having 3 months to prepare have helped ease the loss. Whatever tomorrow brings I know God will see me through it and Friday will be something fresh and new.

This week could be one of those where I just want to hide under the covers and escape all the gloom and sadness that seems to be around with eye center closing and saying goodbye to CUMC, but I refuse to let that happen. Instead of focusing on all the negatives I choose to look at the positives that are currently going on and the bright future that is ahead. I have a wonderful supportive wife at home, my son has a job, I have a place to go and work after this and I also have a part-time job working with the youth at a local Church. Even though things may look cloudy and rain is in the forecast I know that rain will bring growth to me.

Well today it began. Mary and I where introduced to the congregation at our new Church.. The people seem to be really nice and are ready for this and I hope they will support us as time goes on. Now comes the hard part., Saying good by to our current Church and planning programs and setting up at the new Church. Saying goodbye will be the most difficult part and I started that today telling a few of the leaders and 2 of the youth i am very close to. I will be telling everyone else next Sunday and hopefully that will include the congregation. This is also the last week for my current employer to be open so this has all the makings of being a pretty low week but I know it is all part of Gods plan and I know Gods plan will be the best. The picture is from our mission trip in 2006

Well today I had another talk with the Pastor at the new Curch I will be working at and he seems to be very supportive of the youth program. The future is a little scary but also looking bright. i have a lot of work to do but I look forward to the challenge and meeting the new youth.