I know many people wonder why we are nomadic in our life style and this has many answers. When I meet Kathy I lived in Red Oak, Iowa and she in Waterloo, Iowa. I took a chance and moved to Waterloo to be with her. From there Kathy transfered with a promotion to the Coralville, Iowa Yonkers store where she became the Assistant Store Manager/HR Manager.
Then she transfered to Kalispell, Montana which Tony was thrilled with because he loves the mountains. We both loved the area but both felt God calling us to Daytona Beach, Florida so we could be with dad in his final years as he battled alzheimers. Tony actually put this off for a couple years wanting to avoid the heat and humidity he hates. God won!
What happened in Florida was not what we expected. Yes, we were able to help dad in his last years and he thanked me on every visit. Near the end of his life we pretty much had the same conversations on every visit but that's the crulity of alzheimers. But he did know who I was so that was easier for him. With the help of my sisters we were also able to help mom in her struggles.
We attended Oasis Christ Fellowship
http://www.oasisfellowship.com/Oasis/home.html. with a great pastor and made many friends there. We also meet this large, scary looking, former biker and drug addict, tattooed guy and his pretty wife who pastored D.O.C. (Daytona Outreach Center). Through D.O.C. and Pastor Ray and his wife Susan we meet some fantastic men and women who were former homeless, drug and alcohol addicts. We also started to help feed a few men and woman who were in a discipleship program at the D.O.C. http://www.daytonaoutreachcenter.com/ We, with a few other couples from church, made home cooked meals once per month and bought it to them were we served them. Breonna and Skylar loved to serve them and usually made impromptu sermons behind the pulpit after they ate.
This was way out of my comfort zone because I had previously shunned people like this. God humbled me. We learned so much about God through people I once thought were not good for much. I guess I thought I was better than them-I was so wrong. I was the same as they were in God's eyes. They blessed us and I hope we were able to pass some blessings to them. (Editing this part was challenging because my eyes kept tearing up. Thanks Ray and Susan for your service to God because it has blessed many.)
Our marriage also grew stronger because we both grew closer to God. It goes hand in hand. If you want to improve your marriage search first for God's heart because there you may just discover your spouses heart. Put Him first and the complex puzzle called marriage starts fitting together.
On November 3rd of 2009 dad had a brain aneurysm- about thirty minutes previous I was let go at my plumbing job. It was not a good day for me. Looking back I can see how God had closed that door because dad would leave us three days later thus ending our reason for going to Florida.
I had no luck in finding a plumbing job in Florida (I was recently contacted by a plumber in Ft. Lauderdale wanting me to come on. We're not moving again so soon. I said no.) so took a chance on coming back to Iowa. Something we were not thrilled about but were running out of options. I went to a trucking school in Salt Lake City, UT taken a bus for a three day trip. All was going well until they drew my blood and said my blood sugar was too high and they were sending me home. God closed a door I never wanted opened. The thought of being away from my family weeks at a time was heart breaking just thinking about it.
God opening a door a few weeks after I got back from my truck driver adventure. I got a job doing what I've been doing for the last decade and a half-service plumber. I had talked to my office manager a few months ago and she said it was weird how on the day I called to inquire about a job is the same day she put an add in the newspaper for a plumber. She knew it wasn't listed yet but was a little perplexed at the timing. It was all in God's timing.
So here we are wondering what adventure awaits us in our future. Kathy is in college to get a BSN (Registered Nurse) When Kathy graduates college we are open to anything. What does God have in mind for us? Time will tell.
No comments:
Post a Comment