I Got Some Great News This Week!

I get to keep my job!

Following a series of unfortunate events (the details of which I won't bother boring you all to death with), my company decided that "ensuring future corporate prosperity" (how's that for generic business speak) meant giving some of us severance packages for Christmas!

From a business perspective, I actually understand why they had to do it. I even understand why they needed to do it during the holiday season (tax right-off; plus, it keeps the 2008 books clean). What I struggled with was how they went about doing it.

We got an email a week ago saying that severance packages were coming for some of us. Unfortunately it didn't say who. Since our managers were in the same boat as us, none of them knew either. So we just sat around for a week (literally in some cases!) waiting to find out who would get the ax.

Yesterday was D-Day. If you got a phone call from your manager (assuming your manager hadn't already been let go) then you were safe. If you got a phone call some random person from Human Resources that you didn't know from Adam . . . well, we hope you enjoy having a little extra time to spend with your family this Christmas. And oh, don't spend that severance check all at once - that's supposed to last you for a few months!

I got a phone call from my manager.

Whew!

I have to share with you all that I really was at peace with whatever happened. I spent time in prayer with God. I spent time talking with Kelly. Although I had no idea what would happen, I had a sense that things would be OK either way. I kept reminding myself of Jeremiah 29 when God says, "For I know the plans I have for you. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you."

I kept focusing on the fact that God has plans not to harm me. Getting laid-off certainly wouldn't be any fun. But that wouldn't mean that God had suddenly decided to stop providing for Kelly, Tate and I. And since nothing happens by accident without God's knowledge, I had a peace within me that even if I did get laid-off, God would continue to provide for us in another way - and in doing so, He would reveal yet again how truly faithful and wonderful He really is!

So as the dust continues to settle let me say how grateful I am that not only do I still have a job; but even more grateful that I (and you all, too) have a Heavenly Father who looks out for us and provides for us all that we need . . . simply because He loves us too much to do otherwise.

Please pray for those, both at my company and elsewhere, who will go through this Christmas without a job. May they be gainfully employed by a company who has never heard of such a terrible thing called lay-offs!