The Journey (Part 23) This Resume Stinks (Part 2)

Out of the blue we found out about a youth ministry position open in Indiana. We applied and I got the job. That was where the real roller-coaster begins. 4 years there. 2 Senior Minsters, and then my wife decides to file for divorce. That was when I went through driver training school and learned to drive an 18-wheeler. To pay for the school, I had to make a 6-month commitment to drive for an over-the-road company.

As soon as my commitment was up, I found a job with a company in Indiana that I could be home on a more regular basis. I spent 5 years there, starting as a driver, moving up to a supervisor, and eventually running the transportation department for the last 2 years. A change of GM's brought about a change in jobs for me. I found a job down the road at an asphalt materials company. What a great job that was. No stress, just had to weigh and dispatch trucks for an early morning shift. Problem was, by the end of the year, the company I subcontracted for lost the contract. They offered me a job behind the wheel of a truck, but I felt I could do better. So I took a job working for Next Day Freight driving as a casual driver while I relaxed a bit, took some time off when I wanted, and looked for a permanent position.

I found that job through a friend at church. But it was not what I thought it was. The guy who hired me, and we became good friends, wanted me to take over his job while he worked sales to build up a larger client base. I ended up doing more of the sales, which involved making a lot of cold-calls, which is something I despise. I hung on for a while, but it just was not my cup of tea.

From there I went to Alliant Food Service, doing daily routes. Not a bad job, and I had done this type of work before. However, about 6 months into the job, I started to develop tendonitis. I spent some time in therapy, but when I started working again it came right back. It was then that my wife suggested that I go back to school to get my teaching certificate. I ended up going to Ball State and getting a Master's in Elementary Education. It was actually cheaper and shorter to do that than to add elementary education to my current degree.

After graduation I took a job teaching in our local system. This marks the end of 9 years in education. I wish I could say I will end up retiring from here, but there are 2 problems with that idea. One being the current economy and educational climate. Indiana is tough on public education. There is a lot of job uncertainty in this field right now. And the second is, you never know what God has in store. I really would love to preach and teach again in a church, and I have discussed this with God. But His current answer seems to be to stay and wait. In either case, I understand where my mission field is, and I love going out there.