The music stopped; my chair was gone, and I was faced with having to leave a job and career to which I was totally committed and loved for over 30 years. A corporate reorganization resulted in my position and group being eliminated and “absorbed.” No, they said “I wasn’t being fired; your performance was exemplary; it’s just that your position would no longer exist.” “Well,” I asked, “if that’s the case how come I couldn’t do this or that?”
… Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.
To which the response was: “No, sorry, those options are not in the plans.” So, now I had to leave a place where I was no longer wanted (Luke 9:51-62) . How was that possible? I had to uproot my family and an established lifestyle, leave my friends behind and go to a place where I was wanted…but not here anymore. Hurt, anger and a futile urge to “strike back” were emotions that ruled my life for a long time.
Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?
Little did I know at the time that this pain and anguish would lead to new opportunities, personal growth and a transformation of sorts that would not have been possible had I remained anchored in that comfortable place. Little did I know that what seemed like an interminably difficult period of loss and “exile” protected me from the peril and upheaval awaiting those in that place I left behind. Little did I know then that in the long run, it was all for the best… and all part of a plan.
Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God
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