Bird Assignment

I started working at a printing company a few weeks ago and things did not begin very well for me. Just the whole getting into the work groove was a bit of an adjustment and the people I was with were not the nicest to put it nicely. I was not used to working in such a hostile environment and I’ll be honest at first I cried out to the Lord ’NOOOOOO! Let’s go back home to you and me again.”
The first few weeks were tough and I really didn’t want to work there. I’m a people person and organization is not my strong suit, ask anyone I have worked for. I like to blab and don’t like being in one spot all day and here I am working in an office as an administrative assistant. It was like putting a square peg in a round hole. I said to the Lord "I appreciate having a job but how can I reach people for you when they don’t seem to like me and I’m stuck at a desk all day?" I know it’s hard to believe that someone might not like me. :)
I was complaining to the Lord one morning on my drive to work and as I was passing an open field I noticed a bunch of white birds eating. As I got closer I realized there were black birds mixed in I just didn’t notice them from a distance because the white ones were so bright. The Lord told me this is how we, His children, are supposed to be. Even if we are working in a hostile environment or among non believers the light should always outshine the darkness. He reminded me that a pitch black room doesn’t stay that way if you light even the smallest candle. Petty much He was telling me to suck it up and go shine.
I apologized to the Lord for being such a wimp and not being more grateful.
I was still feeling bad that I had to, what I felt, waste 8 hours a day doing silly paperwork when there was Kingdom work that needed to be done. God showed me my problem wasn’t the job it was my mindset. He told me I needed to stop thinking of it as a job and start thinking of it as an assignment. Kind of like that old TV show Touched by An Angel, the Angels showed up at an assignment did their work then moved on. This was what God was going to do with me. I know this is not a place I will stay forever but while I’m here I need to help change some peoples forever’s. This was so comforting to me and it really did change my whole attitude. I liked being on an assignment much better than being on a job.
I figured I would start with the kill them with kindness approach and that did start the ball rolling but it was still slow getting opportunities to talk about my sweet Jesus. But God is faithful and eventually opportunities opened here and there and I was beginning to give some testimony. I was happy with this small result and then once again God blew my mind.
Before I tell you how He did that I want to tell you how I got this job. As you know I moved to the Tampa area and when I first got here my youngest daughter and I joined a soup kitchen ministry feeding the homeless once a week. We were living with very dear friends Cathy and Fritz and I mentioned to them that the Lord wanted me to publish Gena’s Jewels and I asked if they knew anyone in the printing industry. Fritz said there was a man at our church who owned a printing company. So for the next few weeks I was trying to figure out who this man was. Finally I asked Fritz to point him out and he said “what are you talking about, you see him every week at the homeless ministry.” I had been driving to the homeless site for weeks with the very man that owned the printing company and had no idea. God just cracks me up. So I ask Bill, the owner of the company, about printing the book. He tells me to call his office for an appt and he would take a look at it. So the next week I head to his office and as I’m driving I ask the Lord how I’m going to pay for the book. I can’t expect this man to work for free and I have been out of work for over a year and had no money to pay for it. I starting praying and asking God to show me what to do, I thought maybe I could clean Bill’s office or something, you know do a barter type thing. The Lord told me not to worry about His job. I met Bill and after we got things settled and I was ready to leave the Holy Spirit prompted me to pray for him so I did. As soon as I finished praying Bill looked at me and said “are you looking for a job by any chance?” He said he hadn’t hired anyone in a long time and business was slow but he felt like he should ask me. I just smiled and said “as a matter of fact I am.” Doesn’t God just blow your mind? When He has a plan all you have to do is go where He tells you and He will do the rest. OK, now back to our story.
So I’m walking to the back of the factory praying and thanking God for the opportunities He has given me to share, even if they were small, and I get to where they put the books together and there’s my book being worked on. I was so excited I about screamed. Once I got myself together I stopped by the ladies who were working on it and they started asking me questions about the book and before you know it I’m doing my favorite thing in the whole world, telling God stories. I gave them my testimony of how God brought me to Tampa and how I got the job and how good God is, it was awesome. The next day I’m in the break room and one of the guys from the back walks in and tells me he’s reading my book and the two other guys in the room start asking what it’s about!
I had once again underestimated my sweet Jesus. He didn’t just send me to this place to have the book printed He sent me there so the people I was working with could read Gena’s Jewels. They would have pages of testimony of our great God and could ask me questions right on the spot. Is God good or what!!!!
Here again was another reason the Lord sent me to Tampa. He moved me here to the very place He wanted His book published and to the very people He wants saved.
Every place God puts us is an opportunity to further the kingdom. You are never somewhere by accident.
So remember wherever you are working or whoever you’re around right now be the white bird. Stand out and know you’re on an assignment.
Gena’s Jewels