Life Update...God's Been Busy

Good Saturday Morning!

It is HOT outside...105 degrees...WHEW! So, since we last updated you, the Lord has been so faithful to us. Thank you everyone for all of your love, support, and encouragement during this difficult time. We have been blown away with how many lunch, dinner, and coffee invites we have received; how many phone calls, cards, and e-mails; how many offers of assistance for finances, jobs, and materials. We have been truly blessed by our Christian family! So, thank you.

Now, two weeks later, we rejoice in that the Lord knows what He is doing in our lives! We still don't agree with certain aspects of this situation, but we do know that God has a purpose for us to start something new and He is in perfect control because He loves us. We have so much peace and are very excited for the adventure ahead! So, for His glory, we share:

The Update

The Lord gave us two work opportunities to help pay the bills! First, Dustin built a deck with a couple friends. Second, we were Food Lion Promotional Models...we gave away free groceries to a neighborhood to promote Food Lion's my essentials products and were filmed while doing it. We made $400 in 6 hours working together!

Dustin will begin his own business for handyman work. So, he will be doing work like: landscape, deck and shed building, laying tile or hardwoods, painting, replacing siding on houses...pretty much anything that fixes something broken or makes something look better (nothing structural)! He will also be starting his furniture making business which will include restoring old pieces. Those of you from afar already putting in orders, we need to figure out how to ship or deliver the furniture before we can take any orders!! haha For now, he will be making items upon request. First one to request...ME! I need bookshelves, two side tables, a dinning room table, and a shed in the backyard! haha He has to build his portfolio, right!? We already have a couple other requests, too! It will be amazing seeing Dustin do something he loves, is very talented at doing, and gives him flexibility to finish school (in the next two years) and get more involved with our amazing church, North Wake. No business name yet for the handyman work...anyone have some ideas? Best name wins. As for the furniture company, I am still pushing for, what I think is the best name. Business name will be DUSTY, with the tag line, "Rustic Wood Design and Restoration." I think it is quite catchy and everyone seems to agree. Dustin is getting there.

What will I be doing?? I have landed an amazing job with a Christian school nearby. I will officially sign the contract next week, so I just need to sign the dotted line. I will be the 8th and 11th grade English teacher. I will also have one period set aside each day open for students to come to me for counseling! Pretty awesome! I will keep you posted about this great job and ministry. God provided an incredible job in two weeks!

What we've been up to?

Well, besides the countless hours job hunting and staring at this computer, we have been playing in the yard and hanging out together and with many friends! All is great, except that I have an incredible amount of poison ivy all over my body, a heat rash on my tummy, and strange itchy things on my foot (not poison ivy). And Dustin has chiggers! We are a mess! But for today...I think we might just go fishing! (Or maybe tomorrow...today might be TOO hot!)

We will keep you updated...and thank you for your prayers. There is more to share, but I'll leave that for another day!

BLESSINGS!

God is Good...All the Time!

Psalm 1

Blessed is the man
    who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
    or sit in the seat of mockers.  

 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
    Whatever he does prospers. 

 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked will perish.

It has been a very difficult, yet beautiful week and this Psalm has been one that the Lord has used to minister to my soul. Dustin and I both loved our positions with Converting Hearts Ministries, but the Lord had other plans. Last Wednesday (at 4pm), we were both let go from CHM! We now find ourselves jobless...both of us...which is something neither of us has ever experienced. It targets the pride, your feelings of worth, and fills you broken heart with many confusing thoughts. Especially since this was the ministry the Lord so clearly laid on our hearts to raise support and risk everything to work for! (We gave up great jobs and took less pay to work more hours!) Why would He want us there for only 6 months, see many lives changed (families restored), use our gifts for His Kingdom...and then poof! we're done there? First the fog hit, but now we are beginning to see more clearly about what the Lord may be up to and it is so exciting to follow in the adventure of the Lord's steps. I'll try to give you the mini version of what happened (to be blog friendly), what the Lord is doing, and how you can pray for us!

The Reason

Because God said so! haha Well, in a nut shell...Reason one (1) Dustin's job was a beast! He was over social enterprise (farming, carpentry, whatever brought money into the ministry), operations (over housing facilities and vehicles and the budgets for both), and counseled 12 men in the residential addictions program per week. Needless to say, his job was really a three man show...he needed to invest about 60-70 hours a week (seriously) to make it happen)! With full time seminary on top of that, being small group leaders, and a little wifey to love, he was overwhelmed and anxious often. Our boss knew he was very stressed in his role and knew with two years left of school he had no way of working 60-70 hours per week. Reason two (2) Our boss knew Dustin and my passion is for marriage and family ministry. Also that Dustin wants to be a pastor one day. He told us our future plans were going on a different path than our roles at CHM and he wanted people on staff who wanted to passionately pursue a career with addictions ministry. Reason three (3) Summer months are hard for a non-profit ministry. We had raised $15,000 to begin working at CHM and they had told us they would fulfill the rest we needed for the year. However, the $15,000 we raised runs out July 13th. The ministry did not want to invest any money into us, so they will pay us through the 13th. 

Why KJ was let go...Really, bottom line is that we are married and though we were doing completely different jobs and didn't see each other but for staff meetings, our boss thought it would be best for us to leave from our current roles together. It was very hard for me because I loved my job...and because I had just talked to him the week before about my job going full time in the very near future (like in a month). I turned in my full time job proposal the Monday before we were "let go." As the Director of Women's Ministry, the women's program (non-residential counseling, monthly meetings, support group, etc.) was booming. Also helping with marketing and writing...I was absolutely taken by surprise. They offered me a sub-contracting position (to be paid to write, counsel, and teach "per gig"), but for many reasons, I declined. 

What the Lord is Doing?!

There is much more to this situation...we don't agree with how we were let go...but we believe that our God is completely in control so this must be His best to make us most like Christ and for His glory (Rom. 8:28-30). Kinda like..."No use crying over spilled Milk." Or the biblical version...“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?" (Isa. 43:18-20). God has given us some glorious time! For the last three years (since we to moved to seminary) we have been so busy and stressed with school, work, and ministry. Now, we have a few weeks to get needed work done around the house, spend time with friends and family, and just rest with the Lord and each other. We have said probably 100 times over the last five days to each other..."Wow, it is so wonderful hanging out with you all day." We are best friends and this has been a wonderful time of "vacationing" at home with each other and relying completely on the Lord. We know God is teaching us to completely trust Him and what it looks like to balance work and rest (we have been stressed for too long). And He has given us the gift of time right now...to rest with each other!

For the last three years Dustin has worked full time while going to school full time...amongst many other leadership responsibilities. I don't know how he did it all! He gave me the gift of working part-time so I could focus on school and taking care of our home. Well, since I am about done with school and Dustin has two years left, we thought with this new re-arranging of our lives should also come a change in the way we've been doing things. We decided, since the Lord hasn't blessed us yet with little babies, I will go to work full time and let him work part-time and focus on finishing school. I am so excited about giving him this opportunity because he is the hardest worker I have ever seen! With the stress of school off my back, it is perfect for me to work more to help him! YAY...God's timing!

Prayer for Us 

To find jobs!  Obviously, in all this resting and house work together a frenzy of job hunting comes with it! We have until the 13th of July before our paychecks cease. Right now, Dustin is hoping to begin working with a buddy as a handyman (something he greatly enjoys and already helped build a deck last Friday) and is thinking about starting his own furniture making business (he is very talented!). I told him he should name it "Dusty Furniture!" haha He laughed, but I don't think he knew I was serious! I think it's catchy!? Me and jobs, well...whatever I can find that is full time and pays the bills! In the pipeline right now is possibly teaching again, being a journalist reporter for the local news station (haha), technical writing, and my favorite, working again for the seminary (there may be a job opening coming soon!!). 

Pray for us to glorify the Lord with our thoughts, words, and actions during this difficult time. 

And pray that the Lord would provide and we will constantly trust in Him.

...don't know what you're up to God, but I sure love your guidance for those who follow you!...