Sunday, October 19, 2008

How it all Began...


This past May, Eric was approached by another business in Palm Springs to work for them. We prayfully considered the opportunity but after considering all the pros and cons of it Eric decided that staying at the French Valley business where he was at was the best thing. The way that the guys in Palm Springs heard about Eric was through a client at the airport he currently worked at.

Within a couple of weeks, we had another offer, again not something that we solicited, but rather word-of-mouth, this time from a prior boss who had moved to the Oregon area. This offer was from a business in Sandy, Oregon. Neither of us knew too much about Oregon but as we clicked onto the web to investigate it we loved the look of the area. We looked, again, at the pros and cons of a job change, considering more throughly with this new job offer our situation and needs. We set up a flight to Portland (nearest major hub) to have Eric visit the area and the business. The cost of air travel was so high that the lowest fare we could get was for July 3 for almost $400! So we weren't able to act on it immediately but we continued to fine tune what we felt like we needed to make the move worth it. By the time June 30th rolled around Eric called the business with a proposal of what he wanted. The owner stated that unfortunately the job he was hiring him for didn't require an IA license and didn't really warrant the salary Eric asked for.

I believe that oftentimes God uses multiple events to 'line us up' for what He wants us to do. To get our attention; turn our thoughts and focus onto another path. Within hours after that conversation Eric was looking at yet another email from yet another business who was interested in hiring him. This place was only 20 minutes from Sandy, Oregon, so we were familiar with the area already. By now, Eric knew exactly what we needed to make the move worth it for us. We hadn't even had time to cancel the airplane ticket! So, he called the business on July 1st and told them that he had a flight already lined up for the 3rd and would that work to come check out the business? They enthusiastically agreed, and stated they'd pay for the flight, car rental and hotel stay!

The man who owns the business is a Christian and the lead personnel in the business are also. As he sat over lunch with them the day he flew in the conversation flowed from business to churches to sharing one another's stories of faith. As Eric visited the town and surrounding area he noticed the friendliness of the people and the gorgeous countryside. In talking with the financial dept. it became clear that the business valued and rewarded hardworking individuals. It also offered Eric an opportunity to expand his experience in Turbine engines while bringing to the business the wealth of his experience with pistons. They were interested in hiring people who wanted to advance and that's exactly what Eric has been wanting to do for the last several years. It appeared we had found a perfect fit!

Eric flew back into town, and again, after prayer and thoughtful consideration we made the decision that this is the direction God was leading us in. The hardest part of that decision was saying goodbye to ALL the friends and family we love so dearly in San Diego.

In the following months over the summer, we began to have a sense of God's desire for us spiritually in Oregon - the Land of Weird People. (They have a bumper sticker up here that says, "Keep Portland Weird!") Seriously, though, I think the weirdo's aren't as prevalent as just ordinary, nice people. At least that's what we've experienced so far. If you think of us, please pray for us as we seek a church of people to fellowship with and serve the Lord together.

We miss you all and would love to hear from you too!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Very cool guys! Sarah has a cousin who lives in Bend Oregon that we always try to visit when we're in the west coast. We'll keep you in mind when we start thinking that way again. Miss you guys and praying for you Oregon adventure! Rollo and Sarah in Miami :)