Article November 22, 2010 Issue

Gratitude in the job search

BY BILL FABIAN

I continue to be thankful for the blessings associated with a major relocation my wife and I undertook a little over three years ago. Along the way, we learned more about God's love through steadfast, trusting, Bible-based prayer that, seasoned with a generous dose of gratitude, opened our thought to unlimited good even in uncertain economic times.

In the summer of 2007, my wife and I fulfilled a long-standing desire to live in the mountains. We left a large metropolitan area in the Midwest, where I had worked for one company for over 30 years, for a new community with a population of just a few thousand. Since my previous job had been intense and time-consuming, I wasn't able to look for employment before we moved. We bought our wonderful mountain home several months ahead of the move, and set aside savings to see us through the transition. My goal was to find professional employment once we were settled.

We had prayed daily about this move for three years prior to moving. As a result, we felt ready to "sing a new song," as the book of Psalms says, for this next chapter of our lives. My prayers had affirmed that God always employs our full talents in His service. Because divine Life bubbles forth continuously, like a billion-gallon spring, I did not need to fear a void or limitations. I took to heart Christ Jesus' assurance, "In my Father's house are many mansions ... I go to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2). To me, "right place" included a new employment experience.