Layer 1: Edwards
Family
One year ago at this time, I had received a call from a
school district in Everett, Washington regarding a job interview. I had been in prayer since returning from
Seattle in early August that the Lord Himself would pick my future job. I agreed to only apply for jobs and wait. I would know He had picked the city for us
when I would get the call that they wanted to hire me. My faith was simple and solid: if he can resurrect from the dead, He can
certainly cause me to get, or not to get a job.
If you followed this blog early on, you may know how things
transpired from this point. The district
wanted to interview me over Skype only to learn that I had already planned on
coming back to Seattle on the very week they were interviewing. I already had my plane ticket, purchased more
than a month before when our plan was simply to return to Seattle to see the
area and get more ideas on where the Lord was moving.
As a family we had talked about the idea of moving to
Seattle. Amanda and I had sat with the
boys to talk about the possibility of God moving us to Seattle to tell others
about Jesus. I remember that we had the
most support from Elijah, Isaiah, and Josiah, and that makes a lot of
sense. They have experienced nothing but
change in their life and are used to it, having had to hop among 5 foster
homes. Samuel and Zachary were a bit
more reluctant since they loved their family and friends in Houston and were
trying to imagine the idea of leaving them.
We talked with them about this and they quickly came around to the idea
that Seattle might actually be what is best for our family.
Layer 2: Everett,
Washington at Everett Family Church
On a totally related note, it is important to know what was
going on in Everett at the time of this phone call. The pastors of Everett Family Church were
meeting to discern whether EFC should remain open or close forever. The church had reached a crossroads in
commitment from its members and enthusiasm was waning. They met together one night and Mike asked
the team whether they thought EFC should close.
Some were for it and others were not.
Those opposed seemed to have this undefinable idea that God wasn’t
finished with EFC yet. They prayed for
direction and for people who would come to help in their ministry.
Remember that we didn’t know anyone at EFC at the time and
we didn’t even know it existed.
Layer 2: Summer Creek
High School
At work during this time I was totally lost. I had lost all will to continue doing what I
had been doing. Having had the curtain
pulled back on what life is all about, I now realized that the entire kingdom I
had built with my career and specifically at Summer Creek High School was
worthless and useless. Why continue
building a sandcastle that would ultimately be washed away in a wave,
signifying nothing of eternal significance?
I loved the people I worked with every day, I just no longer cared for
the work itself. I was so torn in my
heart, knowing that God would soon be taking us away from everything we knew to
experience everything He had for us.
Many questions. No answers.
Here’s an excerpt from my personal journal,
written on September 28, 2013.
I found myself to be
tired and discouraged this week. While I
still felt God’s presence and worshipped Him all week, I just wasn’t seeing
much fruit. I longed for spiritual
conversations, salvation for others, and change, but I would just look up to
see myself in the midst of my daily work.
That was tough.
In the end, I found
that I was tired. Very, very tired. I continue to wake up in the middle of the
night, sometimes at 2:15, 3:15, or 4:15 and am unable to go back to sleep. Whil e I am super-excited about Seattle, I am
missing a lot of sleep. On Wednesday, I
was just exhausted. I felt “fuzzy” on
the rain. I wasn’t alert and couldn’t
think clearly. I had a normal day at
work, but that combined with the assessments I took for the North American
Mission Board just took it out of me. I
decided to quit working and watched some Myth Busters instead. I almost felt as though I should apologize to
God for it, but in doing that I was overcome with a significant sense of His
love. I believe He really wanted me to
stop and rest, and truthfully I haven’t done that in a long time. When I search the Bible, I consider Elijah
who ran into the wilderness 100 miles to escape Jezebel. He fell asleep and God woke him, providing
food and water. God told him to eat
because the journey was too much for him.
God knows what we need. I believe
He doesn’t want us to work 24/7 because He knows we need rest and are more
effective for Him if we have rested. He
is incredible.
The job I applied for
in Everett has been reposted. Still
waiting.
Layer 3: A Replacement
Though I was in despair and had no idea in October of 2013
when God would bring us to Washington, he had already begun moving people into place
who would replace me. One of the most
significant of those moves involved the district moving an associate principal
from another high school over to my building. She was equal in position to me. The circumstances involving her move to us
were beyond her control and initially we were in this awkward place of working
together while occupying the same position.
However, it dawned on me pretty quickly that what God had really done
was to provide my replacement at work
prior to me actually leaving. It was as
though He sat me down at a table face to face to look me in the eye, stating
“Paul, I have a plan for you. When it
becomes apparent to you what I have done, you will be amazed. As a start I have already put your replacement
in place at work. I can take you to
Washington at any moment.”
That sent shivers down my spine and still does to this day. I
remember talking privately with her and suggesting that her story might just
wind up being that of a modern day Joseph from the Bible. In a 20 year period Joseph went from favorite
son to slave in Egypt, servant in a house, jail inmate, and finally to second
in command of Egypt. I can confidently say that the Lord used this situation
to look out for both of us with equal care.
His strategy and planning were without equal.
Genesis 50:
19 But Joseph replied,
“Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all
for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many
people. 21 No, don’t be afraid. I will
continue to take care of you and your children.”
Now I examine where we are one year removed from these
events. I am a Community Pastor, regular
preacher, street evangelist, mission team leader, and church planter. A year ago I was a Sunday School teacher,
deacon, and associate principal at a high school. What a year! What a God!
I hope this slice of our story brings you
some encouragement. Perhaps you are in a
place where you just can’t figure out where God is taking you. Maybe you have been waiting on him to move
you to something greater for a while now and can’t figure out what that thing
is. Our story should show you that God hasn’t
forgotten you and isn’t surprised by your circumstances. He has you exactly where He wants you at this
moment, and He can literally turn your entire life upside down in a matter of
months. He may already be moving in
situations and “layers” behind the scenes on your behalf. While the picture is blurry or completely
dark to you, it is active and crystal clear to Him. What He wants is you. His love for you is passionate, limitless,
priceless, and everlasting, no matter what you have done or not done in your
life. Surrender everything to Him and
see what He does in that.
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