A new adventure begins!

After 7 wonderful years of staying home with my boys, I have decided to accept a job outside the home!!  I am really excited to see where God leads me in this new adventure and I feel confident that this is His plan for my life.

I always thought I would return to work at ExxonMobil after the boys were both in school full time.  Nicholas is in pre-K this year (half days) and will be full day kindergarten next year.  It's been on my heart for quite some time wondering if I'm really ready to return to work.  There were times I thought yes and times I thought no. 

Then maybe 3 or 4 weeks ago, I woke up one morning with a clear message from my dreams, "It's time to return to work."  I am not one who ever remembers my dreams and so it really stuck out.  I even told Ken and we kind of laughed and said, maybe it's my turn to work and Ken's turn to stay home.  Of course Ken asked if I really thought I was up for returning to all the demands and stress that come along with ExxonMobil.  I just assumed this message meant to find a job at ExxonMobil ... I thought that was the only skillset I had to offer.

The very next week, Vicky Stacy (Children's Ministry Leader at our church here in Doha) approached me and asked me if I would be willing to taking over the position as Friday School Coordinator.  The current (and might I add, amazing) Friday School Coordinator is rather un-expectantly moving back to the UK.  This is a common occurrence in Doha where people are always moving in and moving away.  Originally I thought Vicky was crazy, but the memory of that dream kept tugging on my heart.  So I talked to the Friday School Coordinator and learned all about the position ... roughly 20 hours per week, responsible for all of the children's programs on Friday mornings including curriculum, teachers, materials, staff, etc, etc, etc.

I prayed a lot.  I talked to the boys.  I talked to Ken.  I knew I needed to seek counsel from the scriptures, but didn't know where to turn.  God answered that for me.  I read the Bible with the boys every morning and don't you know that morning we read a section from Proverbs about not being lazy!  I'm not saying that staying home with the kids is a lazy life, it is anything but lazy!  But it seemed to reveal a message to me that I should not be afraid to take this on, to not be afraid of serving the Lord in this capacity. So I updated my (ancient) resume and applied for the job. 

The interview was far more formal than I expected, but apparently it went well.  Instead of offering me the Friday School Coordinator position that I applied for, they offered me the Children's Ministry Leader!!!  This is the Friday School Coordinator's boss.  I was shocked!!!  The current (and also amazing) Children's Ministry Leader is 8 months pregnant and when she returns from her leave of absence, she was planning to start looking for a replacement as her husband's assignment in Doha comes to an end this June.

So after learning more about the job and talking to Ken and the boys and spending more time in prayer and the scriptures, I have accepted the position of Children's Ministry Leader.  I'm really excited about the opportunity, but also a little bit scared.  It's been a long time since I've had such a large responsibility outside the home.  Plus I don't have a teaching background so children's ministry is NOT where I expected God to lead me.  Officially I begin in Feb and the hours vary from 20-30 hours a week.  I will be responsible for overseeing children's programming for Friday School (although most of the week to week work is handled by the coordinator), regular mid week activities (ladies Bible study meets weekly and a mom's group meets monthly), and any other ad hoc children's program requirements and concerns.  I'm certain that it will be both a challenge and a joy to be part of this growing ministry at our church.

I appreciate your prayers for our family, our church, and all the children at Grace Fellowship during this time of transition!