Thursday, February 11, 2010

The Question?

A lot of my friends have been asking me lately..."Is Jeff is going to lose his job?" It has been all over the news about the cut backs. He was told that a 1/3 of their division is going to be laid off and so, that is all we know for now. The date to announce the lay offs is on the 19th of this month. The next question we are asked is..."are you nervous and what will you do?" The answer is "No, not yet" and " we will some how make it and be fine". I have to rely on evidence of what has happened to us in the past when we have been laid off, which has been more than once! It has been tough, scary at times, and hard, but somehow we have always had enough to take care of our family and each time we got a new job it was an upgrade from the last! So...... I know even though it will be hard and frightening at times, that we will weather the storm once again and be alright.

I read  the other day an article by Kathy Wright, it was about a couple who went through unemployment. They compared it to being in a sail boat in smooth waters to dead in the water. In this article she mentioned that sometimes we may not always have a wind blowing our sailboat... but when the wind stops, we need to be willing to row until the wind returns. I really like that analogy and I liked the points that she brought up about how to handle it. I will share them with you in case anyone else is having this challenge or may have it soon.

1. Start Rowing...Even if the pay is not what you are accustomed to, working at temporary jobs will  bring in some income and help keep your spirits up.

2. Be Cautiously Optimistic...We found it wise to hope and pray for the best but prepare for the worst. In a time of uncertainty, it's best to be cautious. Ask yourself, "What do we need to do to survive if this lasts very long?" Identifying essential needs--like food and shelter--helps you avoid putting them at risk.

3. Money Isn't the Only Essential...In the midst of your hard work and concern, it can be easy to overlook  your family's spiritual and emotional needs. We suggest talking to your children frequently about their lives. How are they doing? What are their concerns? What needs of theirs are not being met?

4. Blessings from the Trial...Although I could never imagine it at the time, I now look back at this period of unemployment as one of the greatest times in my life--not because of the hardships, but because of the spiritual growth I felt. We relearned that God is real and He does hear and answer our prayers.

"How often do we not do more because we pray for wind and none comes? We pray for good things and they don't seem to happen, so we sit and wait and do no more. We should always pray for help, but we should always listen for inspiration and impressions to proceed in ways different from those we may have thought of." ~ John H. Groberg

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