Memorial Box Monday: The Job

Our almost-man heads off to college this fall. Mingled with the excitement that comes with acceptance letters is a healthy respect for the cost of college. We had a small college fund growing for him... right now, like the rest of the economy, it's struggling to get back to where it was a few years ago... so he wonders whether the scholarships will come.

Listening as he shared his concerns last week, God nudged my memory...

When I went to college, almost 30 years ago, college funds weren't the norm. A combination of student loans and part-time jobs paid the bill. Freshman year, I worked in "dorm security." There I was, all 96 pounds of me, working 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. as "security" for The Ohio State football team dorm. What??? Whose idea was it to put me there? Not mine, I assure you! (Thankfully, William White, a defensive back on the Buckeye team back in 1984 often sat in the lobby with me as my enforcer when the 300 lb. linemen tried to give me a hard time!)

Anyway, after doing that for a year, I knew it wasn't the way to survive college. I needed sleep, for one thing! Sophomore year, I applied to every campus job available. Rejection after rejection, I got upset. I knew I was a hard worker. I had good grades. I didn't understand why I was stuck in the stupid security job.

One rainy day (typical Ohio day), I went back to my dorm after another heartbreaking rejection with student health services. I stood in front of the mirror, hair drenched, mascara running down my cheeks and cried out to God. You know those moments when you just can't take it anymore and you cry out to God in desperation? Defeated. Empty. Nothing left of you. That's where I was.

Within moments, the phone rang. The lady from health services was on the line asking if I still wanted a job. Ummmm.... YES!!! She explained that I'd have to interview with the Department of Environmental Safety (responsible for OSHA compliance for chemicals, cleaning supplies, noise and more). She gave me directions and the contact person's name. I cleaned up and ran to the interview... and got the job.

What did God give me? A cushy office job with a "word processor" I could use during the secretary's lunch hour to write my papers (for you young readers, this was back in the day when a word processor took the space of an entire room). A group of caring people who "adopted" me into their families, offering me a place to stay when the dorms closed on long weekends. A caring environment that celebrated my birthday with catered lunch, cake and gifts. Mentors who helped me apply to law school and sorted through my options with me. Friends who took time off work to attend my graduation (Ohio State gives actual diplomas at the ceremony -- and somehow Dave, who was a Michigan graduate, put U of M stickers in my diploma... what a laugh!). God gave me more than a job. He gave me a haven of caring and love, more than a girl could ever hope for.

Decades later, after teaching college, being a criminal prosecutor with the satisfaction of taking bad guys off the streets, and other wonderful jobs, this "job" is still the best I ever had. It had nothing to do with the work, and everything to do with God making sure I was cared for. He knew what I needed in my young adult years. And He provided. Abundantly!

As my almost-man looks ahead, I pray he understands that he is never alone. I pray he discovers that God cares for him more than any one or any plan ever could. Of course, I pray for the desired scholarships, but I know that God will put him in the exact situations he needs to become the man God has always wanted him to be. I pray that my almost-man's faith grows with each step forward that he takes... with God.

For I know the plans I have for you, 

declares the Lord,

plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:11

Memorial Box Monday was started by Linny at "A Place Called Simplicity." Please visit her blog to learn more -- and share your memories of God's goodness too!