Hi Brothers,

I do apologize for not keeping up with my articles, but I have been side tracked with the current economic events. I know this is a pretty lame excuse, and I’m afraid I have used it as an excuse more than once. I will, however, not hide the fact that times have been turbulent. I lost my business, or I should say, my business is “extremely” slow, so I  had to look for some supplemental income.

I started working at Walmart starting around Thanksgiving and it has been truly a blessing and a journey to say the least. The hard part is working nights and being away from my family. I often miss them and my wonderful wife has been handling the kids, her job, and other tasks to keep the house from falling apart (bless her heart). Beyond that, while I am currently looking for an actual day job, I have learned a lot about myself. I am learning continuously why God has put me in this position which I am sure I will share in future postings, but for now I would like to share with you an e-mail I shared with my close friends over the holidays.

“Good Morning everyone,

I just wanted to wish everyone of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy new year. Although I have been away from the Friday group for some time, I have been on an interesting and inspiring journey of my own. Since the downturn of my company, I currently work the night shift as a stocker at Walmart. What I thought initially as “humbling”, I have realized God’s greatness even in this situation. Through this experience, I have learned so many things that I believe only makes me stronger. My priorities are shifting based on the people I meet, the stories I hear, and the events that unfold during my journey.

Some of you have been hearing my story more in depth and I thank you for listening to me. I want to thank everyone who has been praying for me and my family too. We are greatly fortunate for your support.

Christmas is a time for us to reflect and remember that Jesus was sent as a gift to give us a second chance. If we choose to believe in him, we choose everlasting life with HIm. I also believe that this is also a time for “second chances” in life too. Working at Walmart has opened my eyes to things I would have never considered had I not been put in this position. I’m not saying you have to get a job at Walmart to realize this, but take a moment to reflect on what you are currently doing. If you’re seeking a new direction in life and are finding it difficult to figure out where to go, there is no better time than the present to ask God for help. It took me a pretty traumatic shakedown in my life to realize this (I’m stubborn at times). Always pray for God’s guidance and counseling. he will help you find the way.

God Blessings for you and your families.

Shalom and Merry Christmas.”

During these times of economic uncertainties, this is a great opportunity to reflect inward and allow God to expose his Grace, Love and Mercy. God has a plan. It has taken me a serious economic downturn to start re-aligning myself to Him.

Pray for me as I begin my Masters program in Education Technology. I pray that I am in complete obedience to His will and not mine. As much as I enjoy the people I work with at Walmart, I love my family even more and hope to resurface into the daytime schedule again.

Meanwhile, I have  the privilege of trying to re-dedicate my energy to this blog. I and a friend of mine have decided to meet Wednesday mornings and study scripture.  So instead of daily entries, I am going to work this blog into our bible studies.

Our format will be similar to that of my previous experiences with the Priority Associates group I was involved with. Each week we will pick apart one chapter of a book in the bible and reflect on it’s impact in our lives. So we have decided to start with Philippians, chapter 1. My friend and I will review it next Wednesday (Jan 29th), and I will make the effort to write our discussions in this blog for further discussion.

I invite you to join with us in our journey.

Cheers