I have been unemployed for nearly 4 months now. That is, I have been without a full-time job for 4 months. I am still working as an Independent Scentsy Consultant, but as you might imagine that does not bring in the same sort of income as a 40 hour/week office job. I hope to be able to grow my Scentsy business into a sustainable full-time gig, and with any luck I will not have to return to the doldrums of a job just for the sake of a paycheck.
I was sitting in church this past Sunday, listening to a sermon that I felt largely disconnected from. It was mostly directed toward parents, and as that is a joy I have yet to experience (though hopefully someday), I was not in tune with most of the message. At one point, though, the pastor was speaking about being thankful and that he tithes because he is thankful for salvation. Jesus paid the price to redeem us, and it costs us nothing. Our salvation isn't dependent on our tithing, but it is something we can do to show our gratitude and obedience.
I must confess that I haven't been faithful in my tithing for awhile, but I just felt God asking me to trust Him on Sunday--to be grateful and obedient, and not wallow in guilt for my previous failure. A dear friend had purchased some of my in-stock Scentsy bars over the weekend, so I had some cash on me. I felt God asking me to put $20 in the offering. Now if you've ever been unemployed for an extended period, you will understand the difficulty in parting with a twenty, and for a split-second I thought, "But I need that." I felt a peace in God's prompting, though, and a certainty that what I needed far more than $20 was to be open to what God was about to do.
On Monday God presented me with an opportunity I couldn't have even imagined. That's sort of His m.o., isn't it? I mean, it's a little hard to be in the advent season and not recognize that the way God shows up is perfectly unpredictable and often unfathomable. And perhaps what's even more amazing is that in presenting an opportunity to me, God was fulfilling a need for someone else. My new boss (who is so fun & amazing) and I were getting a little teary-eyed this morning as we discussed how God had answered our prayers.
On a part-time/as-needed basis, I now work for Mary Had a Little Party, and I couldn't be more excited! :) It was exactly the sort of thing I was hoping for, and before I had even figured out how to tell anyone what I had in mind, let alone figured out how to start looking, my sister forwarded me the posting.
This weekend my gig is attending this adorable candy cart and serving sweets to guests on a holiday home tour. I couldn't have picked or imagined a more delightful opportunity. Thankfully my God knew just how perfect it would be.
I was sitting in church this past Sunday, listening to a sermon that I felt largely disconnected from. It was mostly directed toward parents, and as that is a joy I have yet to experience (though hopefully someday), I was not in tune with most of the message. At one point, though, the pastor was speaking about being thankful and that he tithes because he is thankful for salvation. Jesus paid the price to redeem us, and it costs us nothing. Our salvation isn't dependent on our tithing, but it is something we can do to show our gratitude and obedience.
I must confess that I haven't been faithful in my tithing for awhile, but I just felt God asking me to trust Him on Sunday--to be grateful and obedient, and not wallow in guilt for my previous failure. A dear friend had purchased some of my in-stock Scentsy bars over the weekend, so I had some cash on me. I felt God asking me to put $20 in the offering. Now if you've ever been unemployed for an extended period, you will understand the difficulty in parting with a twenty, and for a split-second I thought, "But I need that." I felt a peace in God's prompting, though, and a certainty that what I needed far more than $20 was to be open to what God was about to do.
On Monday God presented me with an opportunity I couldn't have even imagined. That's sort of His m.o., isn't it? I mean, it's a little hard to be in the advent season and not recognize that the way God shows up is perfectly unpredictable and often unfathomable. And perhaps what's even more amazing is that in presenting an opportunity to me, God was fulfilling a need for someone else. My new boss (who is so fun & amazing) and I were getting a little teary-eyed this morning as we discussed how God had answered our prayers.
On a part-time/as-needed basis, I now work for Mary Had a Little Party, and I couldn't be more excited! :) It was exactly the sort of thing I was hoping for, and before I had even figured out how to tell anyone what I had in mind, let alone figured out how to start looking, my sister forwarded me the posting.
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| How cute is this candy cart? |
This weekend my gig is attending this adorable candy cart and serving sweets to guests on a holiday home tour. I couldn't have picked or imagined a more delightful opportunity. Thankfully my God knew just how perfect it would be.
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