A Lesson

I found out yesterday that one of the ladies who works in the ofice adjacent to me resigned. Her last day is Friday. She had become quite miserable due to some changes that have taken place in her work environment over the past year, so I wasn't terribly surprised. However, I asked her where she was going and was very surprised by her answer.

She paused for a couple of seconds and then told me she was going to Chicago and Milwalke to visit family for about three weeks. I asked what happened after that. She shrugged and said, "My house is paid off, my car is paid off, all my grown children that are living at home help with the bills, and our church has a strong network of people helping other people find jobs. I've been helping other people find work for years now, I figure they'll work with me to find something when I need it. I've been praying about this situation for a while now, and I got my answer. This is the first time I've felt at peace in a long time."

I thought about that a lot last night. Aside from the obvious idea that it pays to be financially stable, I realized that the key to the situation for her was that last part. She'd prayed about it and got an answer. She didn't say what that answer was, but she was confident that moving on was part of God's plan for her. I'm pretty confident that if she hadn't been financially stable to start with, she wouldn't have felt like she was in a position to do it. And this lady makes less money than I do, she's a records clerk.

I admire her quite a bit. I've been trapped in a job that made me miserable, unable to leave because I couldn't afford a pay cut. I have to wonder how many opportunities I missed, how many times God had a plan that required me to leave, but I "had" to stay because I wasn't willing to live on less money. That's a lesson I want to keep.