His Eyes are Upon the Righteous
.
1 Peter 3:8-12
8. Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love of the brethren, a tender heart and a humble mind. 9. Do not return evil for evil or reviling for reviling; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10. For "He that would love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile; 11. let him turn away from evil and do right; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those that do evil."
I have shared previously that I was in the midst of discerning in what direction God was leading me. And though I am sure He has more in mind, for now I feel as if I am in the place I belong. I know I’ve said this before about past jobs, but I look back upon them and realize that, for the most part, I rushed to take them because I thought I needed to. This time, I waited on God. I asked Him to guide me and to shut absolutely every door through which He did not want me to travel. And He did! I started this week working with a Realtor with whom I worked about 15 years ago. He was a very nice young man then, and I thought highly of him. Now, he is a good, solid, Christian husband and father, active in his church, and with the same generally good nature and character he possessed then.
What a blessing to work with someone who shares your faith and who openly tells you who the other “workplace believers” are! I know realtors don’t generally have the best reputation. But this one is one of the “good ones.” He serves his clients with integrity and honesty. He goes far above and beyond what is “expected” or required to help others in their transactions. He is an inherently thoughtful and generous person and though he doesn’t approve of the way so many of his counterparts operate, he remains true to his faith, without “bad-mouthing” or attacking their personal integrity. OK. I know. He sounds too good to be true! If he was perfect, he wouldn’t need me, would he!? But my point is there is a place out there for everyone who seeks it. There are coworkers and employers and associates who live their faith out in and through their work. There are individuals who view their work as ministry. Not their ministry. Christ’s ministry.
I was concerned about the economic detriment on my family when I left my last job. But God has provided for us – even more than we needed in the meantime. And I trust He will continue to do so. Because this time, we obeyed Him and believed that He would bless our obedience. And He has. God does provide for His children. No, we didn’t receive large sums of money from some anonymous benefactor! We did take a look at how we were spending our money, though and realized we could be better stewards. And we agreed that this new work arrangement is less hectic and stressful for our whole family. I have flexibility and ability to arrange my work hours around my family and their needs. That’s a blessing too.
If you are in a work situation that is seemingly unbearable, I hope you will spend deliberate time with God asking Him for His intentions. Sometimes, the intention is that you stay where you are – to learn some important lesson, to do an important ministry. Sometimes, though, things get bad as a sign to tell us it’s time to move on. I know how hard it is to hear that message. I fought it – and fought hard. God will keep working on us though, until the situation is resolved—our way our His way!
My prayer today is that you offer up your life to God who loves us and wants only good for us. And that if you’re at a difficult crossroads, you ask Him to lead down the right path.
Mary
