Sometimes You Get Manna

The circumstances of being unemployed reminds me of the people of Israel's wandering in the wilderness. That's why I titled my book Unemployed: Life in the Wilderness. The day to day struggles of being without work is just like that dry, lonely, desolate, and desperate situation. In a New York Times article of February 22, 2010 entitled "The New Poor," Peter S. Goodman said, "And now they find themselves in the desert of joblessness." I agree. It's obvious to anyone who's been through it. When you're out there in that wasteland of the newspaper classifieds and internet job sites it is just like being in the desert where Israel found themselves.

But, there were blessings there in the wilderness. The people of Israel didn't even recognize it at the time, but God was taking care of them. He provided for them every day. There were probably over two million of them, counting the women and children, yet God provided food and water every day. Sometimes He provided resources so they could buy food (Deuteronomy 2:5), but He didn't always provide money. In the wilderness God provided that strange and wonderful stuff called manna (Exodus 16:4).

Like Israel, when we are wandering in the desert of joblessness, God provides for us in unexpected ways. We can get help from our friends, families, former business associates, churches, and even from "official" sources of government. To get help we don't need to understand exactly what the help involves. When God provides, sometimes you get manna. When it came to the people of Israel they didn't even know what it was. Their reaction was "what is this" (Exodus 16:15)?

When we have a need, whether it's food or a job, God chooses to assist us according to His own plan. It isn't always by providing a job. Sometimes it's allowing other people to be blessed by helping us. Sometimes we can't even identify the specific source of the help. We just feel better after getting it. And, like Israel, we are told to be grateful for the provision without trying to analyze what it is, how it got there, or even how long it's going to fast. It's just good to get it.

Keep moving forward in the wilderness. Keep thanking God for His provision and sometimes you'll get manna.

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6,7 (New Living Translation)

Job Hunting Is Like Wrestling Angels

Experts tell us that the best way to succeed in a job search is to keep at it. When we're discouraged, disappointed, overwhelmed and on the verge of giving up, we must keep going.

I see a wonderful example of that in the Bible book of Genesis, chapter 32, verse 26. Jacob has spent the night wrestling with an angel. It's been tough. At one point the angel dislocates Jacob's hip. That's painful. It reminds me of some of the painful experiences of my job search. There were times when I've left an interview or networking meeting and I felt something was definitely dislocated. But, just like Jacob, we can't give up just because of a little pain. We must hold on and keep wrestling.

In our job hunting we must have the same attitude Jacob had in Genesis 32:26. His basic prayer was, "I won't stop until you bless me!" God responds well to perseverance. In fact, He commands us to persevere.

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial;

for once he has been approved, 

he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 

James 1:12 (New American Standard Updated)

And the great news is that He even provides the power to keep going. That's a great picture of God's grace during unemployment.

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped;

Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him. 

Psalm 28:7 (NASB)

He wants us to hang on and be blessed and He helps us hang on and be blessed. We've just got to decide to do it.

Jacob hangs on and in Genesis 32:28,29 is given a blessing and a new name reflecting his determination. "Israel" means "he who strives with God." Now, did Jacob overpower the angel and force God to give a blessing? No! At any time God could have overcome Jacob's desire to hang on. But God likes determination and perseverance - especially when they are exercised in a desire for His blessing.

In your job hunt, hang on! Keep at it! Wrestle with the situation. God will bless you for it.

For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, 

so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement 

grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, 

so that with one accord you may

with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Romans 15:4-6 (NASB)

Unemployed And Living With The F Word

We don't use the "F" word in public. It's really not socially acceptable to express yourself so… candidly. What would our friends think? What would our children say? And we especially don't want to use that word with our spouses - that would just add to the problem and might even cause a fight.

Did you know that earliest man had to deal with it? In fact, science has shown that, because of it, we as a species learned to survive in a hostile world. Then centuries later here we are, again, in the hostile world of unemployment. History teaches that to learn to protect ourselves we must come to grips with the "F" word… Fear.

Fear can freeze a deer in the headlights of an oncoming car and it can freeze us in our attempts to find work. We get "gun-shy," overreact, and even begin to anticipate the disappointing no's of the job search.

Every successful salesman will tell us that you can't be afraid to hear "no" if you're ultimately going to make the sale. Like them, we can't be afraid of no's in our search for a new job.

The Bible tells us, over and over again, to "fear not" because God is in control and knows what He's doing for those who trust in Him.

"Do not fear, for I am with you; 

Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. 

I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, 

Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10 (NASB95)

There's another "F" word the Bible uses that gives us the means to live with the "Fear" word - Faithfulness. If we boil down words like perseverance, trust, determination, and even obedience, we end up with the word "Faithfulness." Our being faithful to God throughout this tough jobless circumstance can overcome the "Fear" word. And the easiest way for us to remain faithful to God is to remember how faithful He is to us.

Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands. Deuteronomy 7:9 (New Living Translation)

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 (NLT)
Keep at it. God is faithful. He'll help you drive that other "F" word out of your life.
So we can say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?" Hebrews 13:6 (NLT)

Getting Caught With Your Finger In The Fudge

When we're traveling through that dry and desolate valley of unemployment, it is so easy to begin to feel that you have nothing to offer prospective new employers. As the job search seemingly goes on and on we can start to believe that we are completely inadequate for any position. We're too old, not old enough, over qualified, or lacking the right experience. We begin to think the work world may have passed us by. We say to ourselves, "If I was a little more qualified I'd have gotten that last open position, or If I was just a little more experienced in this or that, or if I just had better grades, or a better degree, then a new job would be a sure thing."

One of the biggest temptations we face as job seekers is the desire to "fix" our resumes with a little fudging. Think of truth as a rock in your life. It's impossible to stretch a rock. Yet, Satan wants to tempt us to break that rock of truth and lie. Because no matter how it's justified or rationalized, putting something into our resume that is not true is lying. The devil is called a liar and the father of lies in John
8:44 (NASB95). It says, "You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies."
In Proverbs 6:16,17 a "lying tongue" is listed as one of the six things God really hates. Later, in Proverbs 12:19 (NLT) it says, "Truthful words stand the test of time, but lies are soon exposed." When writing our resumes and presenting our qualifications to prospective employers, we must take that verse to heart.

Talking in Luke 16:10, Jesus said, "If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities." (NLT) Even if we never get caught in the lie, God knows and keeps track. Lying is a way of saying that we don't trust God with the truth. He can't help us get a job unless we take it upon ourselves to "fudge," "misrepresent," or "stretch the facts." To do that and then ask God to bless us in our interviews or in the new job we've gotten through falsehood is just plain crazy! He won't do it. It is against His character. If you look in some theology book under the character of God, you'll find the word "veracity". It means God is totally true and truthful and that He cannot abide the sin of lying.

If there is some knowledge missing in your working experience, be honest. But you can also show that you are willing and able to learn, and that you are motivated to improve yourself. Check with your state employment offices and see if there is money available for training programs. Many states have programs for paying for workers who need to enhance areas of their understanding in order to qualify for available jobs. The government might even have financial incentives for employers to hire less experienced people and take on-the-job training. That information could then be taken into your interview and given as a benefit to the company for hiring you.

God is a rewarder of truth. He keeps the books and will bless your truthfulness. Ask for His help in keeping your resumes accurate and truthful. The fancy word for that is "integrity".

Webster's New World Dictionary defines integrity as: "1. A being complete; wholeness. 2. Unimpaired condition; soundness. 3. Uprightness, honesty, and sincerity". Keep this trait of integrity in your job search efforts and God will bless those efforts.

Guard my soul and deliver me; Do not let me be ashamed,

for I take refuge in You.

Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, 

For I wait for You. Psalm 25:20-21 (NASB95)

He who walks in integrity walks securely, 

But he who perverts his ways will be found out. 

Proverbs 10:9 (NASB95)

Improving Your Job Search

Even in this poor economy, companies are spending millions on "process improvement, total quality management, continuous improvement, or ISO - quality management systems." Under all these names, the idea is the same. To do better in business we must do better in all the processes of the business. I recently heard of one company who have budgeted spending 3% of their annual sales on improving the way they do everything.

We need to be doing the same thing in our searches for a new job. You have a resume. Hopefully a good one. But, are you continuously examining it for improvement? Are employers in your field using different terms to describe what you know how to do? You need to be constantly evaluating that resume and cover letter. You also need to be "de-briefed" after every interview or networking meeting you go to. What went right? What felt flat? What did the hiring official respond to? What seemed to turn them cool toward you? Then improve everything. Whatever works well, keep. What doesn't work, get rid of.

Find an unemployment group at your church or chamber of commerce and meet with them every week to discuss what happened with your resume submittals, job interviews, and networking appointments. Talk about how you can continuously improve the tools and methods of your job search and you'll be that much closer to a new career. Now, wouldn't that be an improvement?