Plans for a Future

I'm taking a break from writing a paper for school to, err, write. :)

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare [peace] and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)

This is a common verse we have all heard at graduations, and one that, when looked at in context, is a message of hope to the people of Israel in captivity in Babylon.

All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for us today, too. It can be applied to our lives! Praise the Lord! I am grateful for daily reminders from God of His sovereignty. He rules this world, though it be corrupt and full of confusion. Nothing happens without his permission. This is an encouragement to me, especially in times as I face now, when I don't know what to do.

Today, God showed me yet again that, in spite of my cluelessness, He is omniscient of all my surroundings and has a plan and purpose for my future.

I have been under pressure with school and family to quit my job for the past three years, but the pressure has come to exloding point recently as my advisor informed me that faculty is concerned about me entering my clinical practicum with mere "A's and B's." So, with much talk with family and analyzing of options (and, shamefully, less praying than I should have), I decided to quit my job with Wal-mart and live off of student loans for the last year of education.

Woah, right there I have already messed up. Wisdom and knowledge of man are foolishness. God's way is the best plan for our lives. Why would I spend the least amount of time talking with Him about it when He knows more than we do? That is a catastrophic weakness of mine, this spirit of independence, and it is one that I must constantly surrender to the Lord.

God has brought me to conviction over my desire to have no job and accumulate debt for a year with no attempt to pay them back during that time. With that conviction came a search for a part time job related to my field of study, a search that bore many seeds, but fruits have yet to be seen (basically, no one has called me in for an interview yet, but there were a lot of available job opportunities).



This has been a big decision, and today was the climax of that decision (or so I hope). I finally went to my supervisor to inform her that I would be dropping to a part time position at the store by the end of May, or I would be leaving Wal-Mart altogether to start a new job if I was offered one. That conversation left me in tears as I love this woman dearly and feel like many of the associates I work with at the store are sort of like family. Telling her my plans made them final in my head and my heart, and that realization meant I may lose the daily contact with these sweet people as I venture to a new area of the store or a new career altogether.

I am not fond of change, just so you know.

Well, that is not the end of the story my friends. Here is part where God revealed His glory to me in such a powerful way!
About 15 minutes after said conversation with my supervisor, I was called into the store manager's office. The door was closed and an awkward silence ensued. Finally, the head boss broke the silence with this statement:

"Your departments are being consolidated with Shoes and Jewelry. As of today, there is no longer a job code for you. You are no longer a department manager. We are not sure what to do for you yet, as this is new news from Home Office. The best we can offer at this point is a list of available positions within the store and you get first dibs on the one you want."

I was not the only department manager to receive this news. Two others were also informed they no longer had a job.

There is a part-time position for a customer service manager open, and our store manager offered me that position. I don't know if I would enjoy it 100% because it may not flow smoothly with associates being as there are cashiers who may really want to be promoted to CSM, and it isn't a job related to my field of study. However, regardless of all that and the stressful environment of the front end, it is a really good offer that is flexible with my school schedule and offers the same pay rate I received as department manager.

Let's see, on top of everything, I received my yearly evaluation today and it went very well. I will receive a good raise in June if I stay with Wal-mart.

I am still hoping to hear back from positions I have applied for elsewhere, but if those fall through, God has provided me a way with my current job that is feasible with school.

And, that, simply put, is cool. Really cool.

In spite of my weaknesses, my failures, and my problems, God still reaches out and works in my little bitty life, to reveal his love for me. Isn't that amazing? He loves us in spite of our sin! He loved us from the very beginning, whether we returned that love or not!

My God is a BIG God. He has me on the edge of my seat longing to see what is coming up next and what purpose He has for me where He puts me. How is He planning to work through me and in me in the next few months?

We will see.

Signing off with giddy anticipation,
--Kristina

Typical Sunday

The college and career class at my church is awesome. I love every person who comes and am grateful for their different insights during our studies. It is such a blessing and encouragement to be in the company of peers who love the Lord and meditate on His word! For the past few weeks (and possibly the next couple of years) we have been looking at the book of Job.
Job is a character I have always admired. His account is one I have read countless times. Each time, though, I discover new things. That is something just amazing about the Word of God. It is alive. It never changes, but the words we need will jump out at us when we need them. Well, I am thoroughly enjoying our study into this book and look forward to all the Lord wants to show us through Job's life.

I worked in the nursery during the morning worship service, so I missed the message, but I hear it was amazing. I had a blast with all the sweet, precious children, but my heart longs to have heard the word of the Lord from the our pastor today. It is always a blessing to help in the nursery, but I am grateful for a rotation on the schedule so I don't miss many services.

God is so good! I don't understand how people can live in this world, see the beautiful complexity of nature, and NOT believe that God is alive, and He is good! He died a terrible death to give us freedom. He did it out of love.

Wow. It's a simple, yet blood-stained message. It is a message of hope and of love; one that shows how sovereign God is, as well as how much He longs to be intimately involved with His children. *sigh*

After church, some friends and I went to our usual Sunday lunch locale: Firehouse Subs.



They are pretty good! If you've never been to Firehouse, you should try it out, especially if you have kids (kids meals include a red plastic firehat). And no, they are not paying me to post that. :)

After lunch, I went shopping with some very close friends. We went to Kohl's where I bought this adorable little peasant top:


Now here I sit, trying to work on school, but thinking about today's events instead. It was a typical Sunday, and it was fabulous!

Tomatoes and Strawberries...Oh my!

So I was walking through Lawn & Garden a couple of days ago and saw these hanging baskets that you grow strawberries in--upside down. I then passed by a basket for upside down tomatoes.




My grandmother can grow anything and keep it alive with just a little dirt, water, and sunshine. Me, well, I did not inherit the green thumb. Mine's not even a sickly yellowish green. But, in spite of that, I have somehow managed to keep this leafy plant in my kitchen alive for one year. I am much impressed. However, the plant IS "hardy", so the tag said.

We grew strawberries at home one year. The plant took over the yard with all its little runners, so I think we ended up killing the poor thing. I do remember those were the best strawberries ever, though.

So...I talked it over with my little self and decided to buy BOTH of those hanging baskets and try my hand at growing things again. Who knows, my thumb may have changed colors since I last tried!

On a side note: I am now wearing contacts and plan to do so permanently. I wonder if anyone will recognize me since I've worn glasses for so long?

Also, I have chopped all that long, dead hair off--for the second time. It is now up to my shoulders. The girl styled it and I am loving it!