It has been 7 months since my company laid me off. As the days drag on, I have been trying hard to determine what's next. I knew when this journey began, it would not be easy, but I thought I would have something in place by now.
Not yet, at least not fully. As I have written before, I got a decent severance that has carried me for a while. I also started collecting unemployment back in late November, which helps as well. Beyond that, I have been doing a bunch of independent contracting work via a few different "gig apps."
I managed to liquidate some assets and came up with enough cash to pay off my truck and my house. That eliminates those 2 large payments from my monthly expenses. I will be debt-free by the end of January.
All of these things are making it easier to mitigate this long layoff, but I can't stay in this spot. Eventually, the unemployment will run out, and the gig work will only get me so far.
I continue to submit resumes and pore over job postings, trying to find something that will fit. What I really want to do is break into freelancing and/or consulting. The dream is to work for myself.
However, as a Christian, I don't really work for myself; I work for God. I was recently reminded of a verse from Jeremiah that really stuck with me:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jer 29:11 ESV)
While I might have all kinds of plans for myself, the reality is that God already has a plan for me. I believe that with all my heart. And if my plans don't align with His, then life will always be a struggle.
God also has His perfect timing. And His timing is not my timing. It never has been. God operates on His own clock. I want to know, right now, what the next move is. But I won't know it until God is ready to reveal it to me.
So, what am I to do? I have to trust God and know that He has me. He will provide what I need when I need it. I also need to be patient. God knows what He's doing, and sometimes He wants me to wait.
He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you." (Mat 17:20 ESV)
Do you know how small a mustard seed is? A little genuine faith can move mountains. If only we are willing to believe. So, I practice faith, wait patiently, and trust in God. When He is ready, He will point me in the right direction.
Until then, I will continue to pray, read, write, and research. Putting in the work even though I am not sure where the road leads. With God, no matter the bumps in the road, the destination will be amazing.
—Daniel