It has been a hot minute since my last post. I would like to say that it was totally because life was busy, but that would not be accurate. It was partly me, partly life, but a great deal of just not being faithful to what God has called me to do through this project. Through it all, God has been with me, encouraging me, every step of the way.

About a year ago, my husband and I were approached with an interesting proposition. My husband, Matt, had been on a sabbatical from the pulpit (he’s a pastor) for over a year. Those days were hard at first, but God was faithful to His word and we were never without the necessities. That whole story is a post for another day. Suffice to say, when we were approached with this opportunity, it was really something fun to consider. The catch was, it was nearly 500 miles from our current home, kids, my job, you name it. But we felt God nudging us to prayerfully discern His will, not our wants.

After prayer and discussion, Matt submitted his basic resume and cover letter. His best friend is a pastor in the area and graciously submitted a reference letter with Matt’s packet. After several weeks, the church called and asked Matt to fill out a form, as they wanted more information about who he was. They also asked for videos of his preaching to see what style of speaking he delivered.

The following Christmas break, we had decided to visit with Matt’s friend for the New Year and Matt let them know he would be in the area if they wanted to meet face to face and discern together. They set up a date and time and we planned to work the meeting into the visit. A few weeks after that visit (in February) the church called and offered Matt the job. Neither of us had any hesitation that this was where God was calling us to be. Matt accepted the position to begin June 1.

Normally, a change like this would weird me out. I have spent the last 24 years in public education, band directing specifically, and now was faced with the question of “where will I find a job?” My gut was never concerned. I had the strangest calm that everything would work out exactly as it should. I started checking job boards, filling out applications, and doing my due diligence, but the truth was there weren’t any jobs within driving distance at the moment. One of the church members reached out to me and suggested I call the local human resource chief and after a pleasant phone call, I sent my resume and cover letter to him along with some letters of recommendation. Despite there being no job open that matched my qualifications, the HR chief said he would share my information with the administration team and they would find a spot for me somewhere. While I know these were just words of platitude, God took them and ran with them.

In April, I received an email from the district asking me to come in for an interview for a new position that was being created in the music department. It would be half band, half choir, with accompanying duties. Of all the instruments I play, piano is by far not one of my strongest. I took the interview and spent the day with the staff and students. It was a very nice day and a peek into a district very different, but very much like my own. A few days later, I was contacted and told that it wasn’t going to work out because they really needed someone that played piano. Ok. That’s fine. I still wasn’t worried. I knew God had something for me. So I continued to search and submit resumes and applications.

Twenty-four hours after being told there was no job, I received another call offering me a job. You see, in those hours schedules and student requests had been processed and the realization that help was necessary was brought to light. I am grateful for this opportunity. I have had the pleasure of spending time with the band staff already and they are going to be amazing to work with. I have only visited with a few of the choir staff but if the rest are anything like who I have already met, it is going to be amazing on that side as well. And the bonus is the job is only Junior High. Call me weird, but I love this age group.

There is much more to this story, but I will leave it untold for now. The point is, when you open yourself up to doing God’s will, God will take care of all the details. I didn’t worry about a job on my end because I knew this new church family is where we were supposed to be. I didn’t worry about moving 500 miles from my family, as I know God will take care of them. This new adventure God has put us on is going to be amazing. Sure, there will be challenges and tough times. But God is the creator and sustainer of all. He is the great orchestra director and when you surrender to His will, your life will be filled with amazing things.

I’m excited for the journey. Day 1 of my new job is tomorrow. God bless this district, this town, the church, and all those He is allowing me to get to know simply because we surrendered to His will.

God bless you all!