Thursday, April 26, 2007

The Lord has Done Great Things

I have been dying to make this public, and I finally did at the branch meeting this past sunday: I will be moving to South Bend to work for the People of Praise at Headquarters!

Once upon a time, there was an event called the Missionary Conference, where 100+ men and women gather to hear the word of the Lord. It was an honor to be there, and I knew it would be a great time to see long-distance friends and to pray for what the Lord wants from me. I was praying for open heart that week. When I heard of the missionary company I instantly loved it, I couldn't be more thrilled because I've always thought it would be cool to be a missionary even at an early age, but I've never seen a real good outlet for it. So I thought, "People of Praise missionaries? Halleluia!"

Also, during the weekend it was great to talk with Paul Decelles as much as I possibly could, and it turns out that Paul Kane was talking to him about me graduating with an Accounting degree this upcoming semester. (Paul Kane later tells me that his reaction was, "Oh that'll be perfect! Just perfect!") So Paul Decelles comes up to me the last night during the party, while I was talking to David Salmon, and says,"Well John, I'd like you to be our accountant, and if you're interested, just come to South Bend whenever you're ready. Good night guys." Once he left, David says, "That sounded like a job offer if I've ever heard one."

The Lord has given me nothing but joy and peace about the Accounting position, so I said yes. With Paul Kane accepting the Director of Finance job and moving to South Bend as well, we were able to see the Lord's hand through it all. Paul Kane is going to be my boss's boss, and it is a blessing that we will continue to share our friendship, but in a different way. We are even moving the same week, and we will be living really close together. It doesn't seem like I can get away from the Kanes even if I tried! Once he told me of the move, I said to him, "Listen, I think the Lord is calling me to move to Portland or Skaskatoon." I'm glad he knew I was kidding. The Lord continues to do great things in our midst.

As of right now, I'm trying to stay focused on final exams and finish one more class in the summer. I'll be a free man in July!

Friday, March 23, 2007

Flat out Rejection

One thing that we are continuing to learn and put into practice is that need to train our entire body (and schedule) to the submission of Christ, and his cross. We should both live out our lives with enduring hope and speak to others about enduring hope.
There's a guy in my Auditing class who's on my project team named Chris. During class last night, the Spirit inspired me to talk to him about Christ. So while we were both walking to our cars, I had to say something, although I didn't have a firm grasp as to what I should say. He asked where I live, so I told him about my Christian household. Then I asked if he knows what the Lord did for us, if he goes to church, and if Jesus still speaks to us. It was as if I was speaking to a brick wall. After his silence, he said, "Not really. See you later man."
I'm not always that committed to taking that deep of a plunge, but once I got into my car, I felt a sense of peace and said to myself, "At least I said something!"

Let's continue to talk about our King.