Back From a Hiatus

I have not blogged in a while. Sometimes life gets too busy to reflect upon at the time. But I am back from my hiatus, and am blogging again.

We have once again taken a direct hit in this recession. I was laid off from my most recent secular job after only three months. John Deere is the second largest employer in this area. Many companies in this area work primarily, and in some cases, exclusively for John Deere. When Deere takes a hit, so do a lot of other businesses in the Quad Cities. I have now twice been a victim of this trickle down effect.

Looking for a job has changed. I did a lot of "pounding the pavement" early on. I discovered quickly that most companies would rather hire over the Internet than in person. This has its advantages. It saves time, saves gasoline and belays that special feeling of rejection you get when they say things like, "well... I guess you can leave a resume."

You discover things you did not really know much about when you're laid off; like daytime television. If a being from another planet were to land here, and the only information he had was what he picked up on a daytime T.V. frequency, he would quickly discover that all Earthlings are either under-employed, under-educated or in the middle of a law suite. How many judge shows do you need? Between Judy, Karen, Joe Brown, Judge Mathess and that real cute lady judge from Cuba, it is overwhelming! I jokingly suggested to my wife that they should just put them all on one channel. Then I found "Court T.V." How prophetic is that!

All in all, the experience has not been terrible. God has provided for our needs, and I'm having fun being a "full-time pastor" of sorts. I have been here before. Maybe that is why I am not so frightened. It is times like this when all of the platitudes and cliches preachers throw around about "living by faith," and "trusting in the Lord," come home to us. It does not hurt for us preachers to have to take some of our own medicine on occasion.

I'm reminded of a story about Queen Elizabeth. During WWII, the German "blitzkrieg" had taken a heavy toll on London's east side industrial district. The Queen toured the area to give encouragement to those citizens who were losing so much.

The next night a Nazi bomber struck a wing of Buckingham Palace with a direct hit. Surveying the damage the next day, the queen was quoted as saying, "I'm glad it happened. Now I can look the east-enders in the face."

I pray that whatever set back or trial we preachers endure in our own lives, that we see it as an opportunity to look someone in the face and say, "I've been there, I understand."

Just a thought. Thank you for reading.