Blogging, is a new experience for me. Though I have kept journals since I was 16, and though I dream of writing a book some day, I am treading on new ground by making my private writing a matter of public record. I suppose I see it as the first step to accomplishing a lifetime goal. So here we go....My friend Julie used to have us (the members of a small leader's accountability group) write thank you letters to the Lord at the end of each year. I haven't been so faithful to the practice, but I thought it would be the perfect way to start this year, and start this Blogging experience.Thanks Lord for 2007.2007 was a busy year. My goal for the year was to keep my head above water. I was teaching first grade for the first time and trying desperately to stay ahead of my class. Trying to master a new grade (again), trying to get those naughty first graders to follow the rules, stop talking and learn all they were supposed to learn, and... trying to shine in the process was a lot of work. I was also teaching adult ed- English as a second language (ESL). I had a small group of ladies diligently working on their English skills and though it was a lot of fun- and I met some fabulous people (and practiced my Spanish), it was hard working two jobs.We, the temporary teachers of the district learned early on that we would not be getting promoted to probationary positions in 2007 and once again we would face the possibility of losing our positions at the end of the school year. So I started saving money to try to prepare for the possibility of unemployment. Deja-vu!As June was fast approaching, I started seeking what You would have me do... was it time to leave? Or was it yet another opportunity to watch You open doors that seemed impossible to open? I wasn't getting any answers. There was going to be an opening at my school for a 2ND grade teacher, but I wasn't being promised the job. I was going to have to interview for that position.At the same time, the doctors found a lump in my breast with my first mammogram. They wanted to do a biopsy and figure out if it was something that needed to be dealt with. Because of the timing of it all (the end of the school year), I lost my insurance before I had an answer to the question- is it cancer?So June came, no work, no insurance and no answer as to what You Lord were calling me to do. In most years prior, You had made Your intentions clear- I was staying. It may have seemed impossible, but You would tell me- and I would wait and watch to see how it was going to be brought about.This year, the message was.... NO MESSAGE!I didn't have a promise, I didn't have a clue. You were however showing me through the books of Exodus and Joshua that you had plans for me, that You had intentions of using me, but I didn't know where and I didn't know how. You were also showing me that like Pharaoh's heart had been hardened against Moses and the Children of Israel, so you had hardened hearts against me. And just as You would do a work to reveal Yourself and subsequently soften Pharaoh's heart, so that was happening for me. But with this new understanding of my situation, came confusion of what did it all mean. Then, when I interviewed and didn't get the position, I got it. So my thought was, it was time to move on. In fact, you were speaking to me about going back to the starting place, just as you called Moses back to the burning bush. But I didn't know what that meant. Retail? Food Service? Christian School? What is the starting place? The starting place for working in public school just fell through. Back to second grade, staying at my school, that wasn't going to happen. I must say, I was devastated.But then Lord, when I was ready to pull the plug on teaching and move on, You opened doors that seemed impossible and I got a call to come sign a contract... back to my old school, back to the starting place- 2ND grade.And here I am Lord, thanking you for the difficult times of uncertainty in 2007, because as always, You proved Yourself to be faithful and You brought me out!I love you Karen
Labels: Thank You Lord for 2007