On Weds June 16th 2010, 1 day before my 38th birthday, I wrote a blog post. This post summarized a season of my life, that had consumed me and would have been my downfall if God didn’t turn some misfortune into something great. I did not realize it at the time but this was my turning point! I thought it would be great to see where I was then and where I am now. I had no idea of my path and could have never guessed what 4 years would change. Here is the post:
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
God’s plan is not always easy to recognize. Sometimes it takes years, and sometimes it takes a lifetime of prayer and concentration to even begin to imagine part of it. We never fully understand his plan while we are here on earth. A small part of his plan for me is becoming clear.
For almost 20 years I worked 60-70 hours a week. I worked hard, did a good job and learned life lessons that I needed to learn. In March 2008 I was asked to move to Summerville, SC and manage a distribution branch for the company I worked for. The housing and construction market in Florida was already spiraling down and we were changing the business model of the Tampa branch. I am not a salesman, so I decided to take the job in SC. I have always loved the low country. I have been coming here since I was 11 years old. My family has been members of hunting clubs or had land leased since I was a child. Angela and I were excited about the move and anxious at the same time. We had lived within 25 miles of our families since we were married.
We knew the move would be a blessing, so we headed to Summerville one Thursday afternoon. We arrived in Summerville that evening and went to Wal-Mart to purchase a local cell phone for Angela. While we were paying for the phone we met a lady named Carol. Carol had moved here the year before and no one helped her find her way around. She is one of the most outgoing people I have ever met. So she offered to take Angela and the kids around town and help us find a home to rent. We went to her house that night and met her husband Randy. The next morning I went to my new office to check out the brand new facility. Carol and Randy drove my family around town looking at houses all day. They were definitely sent by God. They laid the groundwork for us to be able to find a home to rent in 1 weekend. Thanks!
My good friend Chuck was building the facility and had hired the first member of my new staff. Harry is without a doubt one of the finest men I have ever had the privilege to meet. I consider him a friend for life. He helped me move furniture into our new house the next week, without complaint or hesitation. He has been a loyal friend ever since.
The plan was for my family to stay in Fl until the end of school and I was driving and flying back on the weekends. That was fine for two weeks. I called Angela one evening and said get the house packed, the kids can finish the school year up here. The house was not even listed for sale. Angela did the research and found a couple of realtors. We interviewed 2 and went with the second one. She said our house would not sell for what we wanted, but we listed it at our price anyway. The sign wasn’t even in the yard yet and we had an offer. Another gift from God!
We were all moved in and the office opened in June. The recession had reached the low country about the same time. We were gaining ground daily, slowly but surely. I hired another member that is a lifelong friend. Paul is one of a kind. Unfortunately our leadership at corporate changed in October and things began to change. The Summerville branch was changed to a pickup only branch in December. This meant I had to lay off people again. Harry and Paul were the targets. They both agreed to take huge demotions and stay! They even decided to average their new pay and make it even. However in February 2009 I was told the location was closing and I would be an outside salesperson for the area and Harry, Paul and Melissa would lose their jobs. It was a steady downhill fall from there. In October 2009 Joe, my friend and boss, called me and said I was being laid off. This was actually one of the greatest blessings yet.
I searched hard for a new job harder than I worked at work. I can’t afford to be unemployed. November came and went no job. December same story, then January, February, March. I still don’t have a real job as I am writing this in June. I have been doing rental move out cleanouts, yard maintenance and handyman work since May. It is not what I want to do but God’s Grace has provided for my family without fail. Angela had been working part time at an orthodontic practice doing marketing and exams. Dr. Keith had sought her out and asked her to come to work for him. Cauy was a patient and Angela being Angela helped him out at an event he was having. She felt it could be better so she made it better and it landed her a job. When I lost my job she started working full time and is now the practice manager.
My greatest blessings in this period of my life came through my wife. She kept going to churches and trying to find one that we could agree on. It wasn’t working. She had started to like Seacoast and I was not going to THAT church. She continued and December 2009 I went one Sunday and did not like it. However it was important to Angela so I went a couple Sundays and then it happened. On Christmas Eve 2009 God spoke into my heart. He told me to get over myself and open my eyes to the great things happening at the church. I had not been living a Christ like life, for a while now. I had never left the Lord; I just wasn’t leading the life he would have me lead. I wasn’t doing horrible things; I have the Christian values instilled in me from my family. I had strayed from him, a little or a lot doesn’t matter. Seacoast puts a priority on reaching people that don’t normally go to church. We are all disciples! I have never felt this confident and compelled to share the Gospel. In doing this both Raegan and Cauy accepted Jesus and were baptized on Sunday, June 13, 2010. Along with them Angela rededicated her life to Christ through baptism I finally was washed myself. It was glorious! We were baptized in the Atlantic Ocean at Isle of Palms County Park. The whole Summerville campus staff was there with Pastor Phil to wash us clean. Our closest friends here came and celebrated with us.That’s the story to this point. We are supposed to be here, no question. As far as his plan for me, I started my blog on June 15, 2010. I hope to use this tool to do God’s will and keep me accountable to walk the path that the Lord has set for me. I can’t wait to see where it leads. I am being called, I know from whom. I just haven’t gotten all the details yet.
For almost 20 years I worked 60-70 hours a week. I worked hard, did a good job and learned life lessons that I needed to learn. In March 2008 I was asked to move to Summerville, SC and manage a distribution branch for the company I worked for. The housing and construction market in Florida was already spiraling down and we were changing the business model of the Tampa branch. I am not a salesman, so I decided to take the job in SC. I have always loved the low country. I have been coming here since I was 11 years old. My family has been members of hunting clubs or had land leased since I was a child. Angela and I were excited about the move and anxious at the same time. We had lived within 25 miles of our families since we were married.
We knew the move would be a blessing, so we headed to Summerville one Thursday afternoon. We arrived in Summerville that evening and went to Wal-Mart to purchase a local cell phone for Angela. While we were paying for the phone we met a lady named Carol. Carol had moved here the year before and no one helped her find her way around. She is one of the most outgoing people I have ever met. So she offered to take Angela and the kids around town and help us find a home to rent. We went to her house that night and met her husband Randy. The next morning I went to my new office to check out the brand new facility. Carol and Randy drove my family around town looking at houses all day. They were definitely sent by God. They laid the groundwork for us to be able to find a home to rent in 1 weekend. Thanks!
My good friend Chuck was building the facility and had hired the first member of my new staff. Harry is without a doubt one of the finest men I have ever had the privilege to meet. I consider him a friend for life. He helped me move furniture into our new house the next week, without complaint or hesitation. He has been a loyal friend ever since.
The plan was for my family to stay in Fl until the end of school and I was driving and flying back on the weekends. That was fine for two weeks. I called Angela one evening and said get the house packed, the kids can finish the school year up here. The house was not even listed for sale. Angela did the research and found a couple of realtors. We interviewed 2 and went with the second one. She said our house would not sell for what we wanted, but we listed it at our price anyway. The sign wasn’t even in the yard yet and we had an offer. Another gift from God!
We were all moved in and the office opened in June. The recession had reached the low country about the same time. We were gaining ground daily, slowly but surely. I hired another member that is a lifelong friend. Paul is one of a kind. Unfortunately our leadership at corporate changed in October and things began to change. The Summerville branch was changed to a pickup only branch in December. This meant I had to lay off people again. Harry and Paul were the targets. They both agreed to take huge demotions and stay! They even decided to average their new pay and make it even. However in February 2009 I was told the location was closing and I would be an outside salesperson for the area and Harry, Paul and Melissa would lose their jobs. It was a steady downhill fall from there. In October 2009 Joe, my friend and boss, called me and said I was being laid off. This was actually one of the greatest blessings yet.
I searched hard for a new job harder than I worked at work. I can’t afford to be unemployed. November came and went no job. December same story, then January, February, March. I still don’t have a real job as I am writing this in June. I have been doing rental move out cleanouts, yard maintenance and handyman work since May. It is not what I want to do but God’s Grace has provided for my family without fail. Angela had been working part time at an orthodontic practice doing marketing and exams. Dr. Keith had sought her out and asked her to come to work for him. Cauy was a patient and Angela being Angela helped him out at an event he was having. She felt it could be better so she made it better and it landed her a job. When I lost my job she started working full time and is now the practice manager.
My greatest blessings in this period of my life came through my wife. She kept going to churches and trying to find one that we could agree on. It wasn’t working. She had started to like Seacoast and I was not going to THAT church. She continued and December 2009 I went one Sunday and did not like it. However it was important to Angela so I went a couple Sundays and then it happened. On Christmas Eve 2009 God spoke into my heart. He told me to get over myself and open my eyes to the great things happening at the church. I had not been living a Christ like life, for a while now. I had never left the Lord; I just wasn’t leading the life he would have me lead. I wasn’t doing horrible things; I have the Christian values instilled in me from my family. I had strayed from him, a little or a lot doesn’t matter. Seacoast puts a priority on reaching people that don’t normally go to church. We are all disciples! I have never felt this confident and compelled to share the Gospel. In doing this both Raegan and Cauy accepted Jesus and were baptized on Sunday, June 13, 2010. Along with them Angela rededicated her life to Christ through baptism I finally was washed myself. It was glorious! We were baptized in the Atlantic Ocean at Isle of Palms County Park. The whole Summerville campus staff was there with Pastor Phil to wash us clean. Our closest friends here came and celebrated with us.That’s the story to this point. We are supposed to be here, no question. As far as his plan for me, I started my blog on June 15, 2010. I hope to use this tool to do God’s will and keep me accountable to walk the path that the Lord has set for me. I can’t wait to see where it leads. I am being called, I know from whom. I just haven’t gotten all the details yet.
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In the next few days I will update the story starting June 16, 2010. It is such a blessing to look back and see how far my family and I have come!
rustyreeder 