Up in Smoke

As I mentioned in last week’s blog entry, I was out of town last weekend, so I missed most of the terrible firestorms that tore through Southern California… and especially our Brea, Yorba Linda, and East Anaheim area. Seventy mile-an-hour winds fanned huge walls of flames that bore down on communities with frightening speed and ferocity, while wind-blown embers jumped fire lines, hilltops, and 12 lanes of freeway with equal ease. At least 3 families from Messiah lost their homes to the blaze. The young hostess at Joaquin’s Mexican Restaurant, where I dine with family and friends every Friday night, evacuated with her family just moments before the inferno consumed their house. She escaped with little more than the clothes on her back. Sadly, with hundreds of homes lost to the fires, and so many people displaced, her story is not even unique. Years of memories, effort, and investment… up in smoke.

On Thursday, the day before I flew off to Ohio, I had my own fire to contend with. At about 2:30 in the afternoon, I was notified that the company that had employed me for the last 9 years was reducing its workforce by 20 percent. Needless to say, it came as a bit of a shock that my position was being eliminated. Sadly, with hundreds of jobs being lost each day, my story is not even unique. Years of memories, effort, and investment… up in smoke.

They say that it’s a Recession if your neighbor loses his job; it’s a Depression when YOU lose YOUR job. From my perspective, it’s definitely a Depression. LOL!!!

As if all of that weren’t enough, all of us have to contend with the fires in the financial markets that are burning through 401K retirement savings, stocks, and real estate. According to the LA Times, retirement is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Sadly, with billions in lost investments, the stories of financial losses are anything but unique. Years of memories, effort, and investment… up in smoke.

After I lost my “supposedly secure” job, I was probably the most positive person around. I recognized the blessing of getting handed a severance package along with the lay-off. I saw an immediate end to schedule pressures and stress. I saw some long delayed time off. I saw immediate savings by not having a long commute every day. I saw immediate and future opportunities in an independent business I had already put in place, and I’m really secure in the knowledge that God is leading and protecting me.

I overheard someone talking about me, though… they said: “Dave’s putting up a brave front, but I know he must be upset and worried about finding another job.” Actually, I am not. Christ taught his disciples, and he teaches us today, about worry. He absolutely says: “DO NOT WORRY!” Get out your Bible and read Matthew 6:25-34, where Jesus asks: “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Those passages from Matthew also give us the key to a positive attitude:

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Matthew 6:33-34

In seeking God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, we need to come alive in God’s Spirit, and that… is a Spirit of power, not one of worry or fear. Seek God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness in His Word, in worship, in fellowship, in prayer, and in service. When you walk every day with Jesus, it’s really hard to have a negative attitude.

Most of us know the truth in the statement that: “Each day has enough trouble of its own.” How we respond to trouble shows the world exactly where our heart lies… as orphans of a dark and uncertain fate, or as beloved children of God. Christ wrote the end of the story on my heart, and nothing is going to change the joy I know and the peace that fills my soul.

Your brother in Christ,

Dave