The Grand Plan

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

This is one I have in my back pocket and, honestly, since the first time I saw it, it never left me. In my junior and senior years of high school, one of my best friends, Whitney, had this verse written out on a dry erase board in a special part of her bedroom. She had a portion of her room dedicated to what she was most passionate about--music. There was a piano, mic, a guitar, cd player, country memorabilia, records hanging on the wall, sheet music etc. I remember the two of us hanging out in there discussing our dreams of college and our future careers. Her goals always seemed so exciting and focused and, looking back, I now know it's because she leaned on the Big Guy for answers and guidance. Needless to say, God has had GREAT plans for Whitney. She went on to study music business at Belmont University, fell in love with Nashville and her soon-to-be husband (who works in the music biz), and she landed a great job on music row as well. People like Whitney inspire me not only to use my gifts but to do it for the glory of God. Each of us is unique and wonderfully made. The Lord wants us to do what He made us to do.

I finally feel like God has revealed a big part of His plan for me and I am absolutely ecstatic about it! Here's how I got to this point...

God doesn't make mistakes. Sometimes you are in the wrong place for a good reason. I am grateful for each job I had after college and definitely enjoyed each of them in certain ways but, for varying reasons, I kind of felt like a square peg attempting to fit in a round hole. I did a ton of research on my personality type to just try and "figure it out." What was missing?! The last thing I wanted was to job hop and have "unreliable" written all over my resume.  In the figuring-it-out-process, memories of my time as an au pair flashed through my mind just about every single day and the people who knew me the best kept saying I should work with kids. So, I began to explore more options by shadowing last spring at a few elementary schools and at the Meyer Center with an OT, PT, and Speech Therapist. I was getting closer...

I made the decision to become a teacher and was accepted to start classes at Converse College in the Masters of Arts in Teaching program beginning in June but certain things just literally weren't adding up. If I became a student full time and quit my job, how would we maintain our lifestyle? ...pay our bills?? Like I said before, God doesn't make mistakes; He has a bigger plan. Much to our surprise, we quickly found ourselves packing up our Greenville life to move to Roanoke. I thought (in the midst of the moving madness) that it would be really nice to have (at least) a part time job so I began to look diligently into after school programs, daycare, and teacher aide positions. I applied all over and made lots of phone calls. And it happened. It REALLY happened! I got a job as an Instructional Assistant at a county elementary school. Certified teachers weren't even getting hired for aide positions...how did this happen? Yep, it was G-O-D.

I was originally hired to work one-on-one with a severely autistic child for most of the day. I doubted--could I do it? (Then I was reminded- "God never gives me more than I can handle.") Two weeks before school started, I found out that the child was moving away a few weeks into the school year and my new assignment was to be in Kindergarten full time. In hindsight, I am truly amazed that God gave me the courage to accept the position assuming the challenge of the autistic student for the full year. Again, He had a bigger plan. As I began the position, I found out exactly how much patience I have and became SO interested in understanding autism to make those three weeks with my sweet student as productive as possible.

Since starting my job, I have learned all about the school environment. From classroom management to lunch duty, I have truly found my place. I finally feel PASSION throughout the entire day--I mean, how could I not?! I have the chance to impact and educate precious little lives. With our move to VA, God afforded me the time/resources to have this job and to make a much more informed decision as to whether or not I should go back to school. He allowed me to research and compare Masters programs and license programs. He provided teacher friends to give me sound advice and a new city to start over in. He made it easy and obvious.

SO- I finally chose a program and I have applied to start at Mary Baldwin College next semester in the Post Baccalaureate Teacher Licensure program. There are few more steps to complete before I am officially accepted but, if all goes accordingly, I'll be finished in about 1.5 years and ready to teach!

I share this story because it's really been on my heart to share. I know tons of people (at all ages) who are trying to figure out what they are meant to do career-wise. I don't want you to think for one second that I am referring to your purpose in life--that's an entirely separate discussion. I just want you to know--whoever you are--that I have been there too. I have come home from work in the past angry, frustrated, crying, and begging for the answer. At times, I wondered if I belonged anywhere at all. I guarantee you that God has a plan for you too. I dare to say that His plan for us is often overshadowed by our forceful, impulsive, impatient nature. Take a second...ask God. Ask Him a lot. If you don't hear him speak, keep asking. I guarantee, He will let you know. Ask, seek, knock...remember?

Love,

A Teacher