Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” - Mark 10:27
In order to make such a big move, there were a few important things I needed to
figure out.
1) I’d
need a job. Probably teaching, since I’m still paying off the student loans.
2) I’d
need a home.
3) I’d
need to figure out how to get my stuff to my new home.
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| (Nope. Didn't create this one either. Sometimes I love Google. Sometimes I hate it) |
Plus I needed to finish the 2011/2012 school year. If you
didn’t realize it, the last month of school is a terrifically busy time for teachers.
There’s the last push to finish covering material. Projects to wrap up.
Reviews. Tests. And GRADES. Not to mention all the “end of year” fluff that makes it memorable for the students and their families – field days, field trips, yearbooks, assemblies, awards and showcases. Oh, and
the behind-the-scenes stuff – staff meetings, ranking lists, transition notes
for next year’s teachers, debriefing curriculum maps, and planning necessary changes
for next year.
So, I had to prioritize. Since I don’t like commuting, I
decided to tackle finding a job first.
Goal: any teaching or other position in 3rd – 8th grade for which I am qualified. In a VA district within a 4 hour drive of Raleigh. Not more than 2 hours from ocean access.
Strategy : Apply everywhere. Pray for the right doors to
open.
Turns out that everywhere within my boundaries includes
more than 35 school divisions (districts). Most with their own online
application portal. After eliminating a few that were too rural, or listed a
pay rate far lower than my current salary, I still had 25 reasonable
candidates.
Prayerfully I began filling out packets and answering
questions.
Lord, please lead
me to a job. Help my application stand out from the crowd. Surely, there’s got
to be some district that needs a teacher with my skills. Please, open a door. I
just need one reasonable offer.
As I filled out applications, more questions came up.
It was clear that VA has an openness to out of state candidates.
There appeared to be openings, but were districts truly hiring outside
candidates? A lot of districts in the Puget Sound area had posted openings that
were filled by internal candidates, or teachers who had been RIF’d (laid off)
due to continuing budget problems. What if all the openings I was seeing were
the same type of phantom openings? Would I be able to get a job from out of
state? Could I perhaps do some preliminary phone interviews, then arrange to
fly out for a week early in the summer and do a bunch of in person interviews
all at once?
If I couldn’t find a full-time teaching position, what else could I do? Could I get work in a district office, doing something clerical? Or working with the assessment folks? I knew I could probably sub, but would that pay the bills? No matter what, I was taking a pay cut moving to VA. And I would have to pay state taxes. And I didn’t have a roommate any more. Could I afford part-time work? How long would it be before I was working daycare again? Waiting tables?
A hundred questions. A hundred uncertainties. A hundred
reasons to change my mind.
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| (Another image I did not create. I really need to get more creative.) |
I was acting on my new understanding of God the Provider.
I was trusting in my assurance that this was “okay” with my Heavenly Father,
and that He would be with me, come what may.
- 10 weeks ago, I decided to move across country.
- 9 weeks ago, I turned in the first of many job application packets.
- 8 weeks ago, I got my first interview, over the phone. The possibility that I could get a job from a phone (or Skype?) interview hadn’t really occurred to me before. I was excited. That would save me the costs of a trip. I began to pray for just such an opportunity.
- 7 weeks ago, I sent my 7th group of students off for their summer vacation. I decided to allow myself two more weeks to focus on the job hunt, then I’d have to work on the other details.
- 6 weeks ago, I finished submitting the 25th and final packet. I had never heard back from that first interview. I faced the possibility that I might be moving without a job. I prayed for wisdom. I prayed for confidence.
- 5 weeks ago, I had my second phone interview. On Tuesday. OnThursday, I had a job.
From a phone interview.
Because with God, truly, all things are possible.
