What's that Big 'O' in the Sky... Is it Captain Obvious?

If we've ever prayed together you've probably heard me say something along the lines of:
            "Father when you speak to me (or us) please help me (us) to know that is you,
             make your commands and leading completely obvious..."

I need obvious.  Ask my wife... she'll tell you that I'm pretty dumb when it comes to signs and directions.  Once she explains it to me, I'm like, "Oh that make sense now, I'll pay better attention next time."

Maybe I'm the only one out there, but I go through times when my prayers become immediately disrupted by random thoughts.  Thoughts of I don't know, finances, chores, work, or some unfinished business..  it can be really anything.  The past couple months it has been like this.  Its funny, I started to do a pre-prayer before my real prayer.  Like you know how a book will have a preface that gives the reader an insight on what to expect from the author once the book actually starts... well I started doing that with God:
          "Father, it is my desire for our time together to be without distractions.  I have
           yet to figure out if it some sort of spiritual warfare or just my immaturity lately,
           but whatever it is help me keep this prayer vertical (between You and me) and
           not horizontal (everything else)."

Today when I put on my 8 layers of clothes and get in my Volvo (that still runs great but the heater seems to be more of a warmer since it only warms the temperature in the car to just around tolerable) one of my stops I'm going to make is the dollar store to pick up a new prayer journal.  God has been doing a lot lately and I don't want it to fade in my memory.. I need to write it down.  I also need to pray more and writing helps me A.D.D. thing when I just pray verbally.  My father deserves more of my attention, and lately He's been working a lot more in my life and I need to spend more time in His presence.. and I need to take notes.

So I got laid off from my employer of 19 months for something that just boils down to politics and very little to do with me.  My immediate thought was, "Okay God, what is your plan here?"  I had gone above the call of duty in loyalty (and probably naivety) to volunteer for time off that was initially going to be 3 weeks till the next job and ended up being closer to 9 weeks.  So after 3 1/2 weeks of returning back to work they cut me loose.  I've been without work for almost a month now.

During my last period of unemployment I had plenty of honey-do's and things to keep me busy for the most part, but now that I'm back less than a month later, there is not a whole lot for me to do.  So I've contacted a local Christian k-12 school a couple blocks away to do some volunteer work in whatever capacity they need.  I also contacted the Denver Rescue Mission and have offered the same.  I have yet to hear back from either of them, but that's okay, they know how to contact me.

I've also kept myself available for whatever our church needs.  A while back I told you about the Youth Ministry position being filled.  Well turns out the guy had second thoughts and backed out.  Two days ago I was offered the interim position as Youth Leader.  Interim meaning only 16hrs or so a week and it will be my job just to keep the ball rolling until they are able to find someone to take over.  Personally, I'm in no rush to hand over the responsibility.

The first obstacle of this position will be the weekday youth group night.  In the past it has been on Wednesdays, but I have apprenticeship classes on Mon/Wed from 6 to 9pm so hopefully switching it to Thursday nights won't be an issue.  So yesterday afternoon I'm discussing scheduling and that my (when I eventually start) work schedule will be 7am to 3:30 mon-fri.. class is mon/wed 6 to 9pm, tuesday/fri will have to be my office hours from 4 to 7/8 pm, Thursday will be youth night and then Sunday will be all morning/early afternoon.  So my weekdays will be pretty packed..  but very do-able...stupid night classes.. can't wait till they are finished.

I leave the church office, go home to kiss my wife, and then go to class.  Then something interesting happens.  I was listening to my audio Bible on the way to class about Peter in Acts 10, wishing that God would be THIS obvious with me:

Peter went up on the flat roof to pray. It was about noon, ¹⁰ and he was hungry. But while a meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. ¹¹ He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners. ¹² In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds. ¹³ Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.”
 ¹⁴ “No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean.^[b]”
 ¹⁵ But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.” ¹⁶ The same vision was repeated three times. Then the sheet was suddenly pulled up to heaven.
 ¹⁷ Peter was very perplexed. What could the vision mean? Just then the men sent by Cornelius found Simon’s house. Standing outside the gate, ¹⁸ they asked if a man named Simon Peter was staying there.
 ¹⁹ Meanwhile, as Peter was puzzling over the vision, the Holy Spirit said to him, “Three men have come looking for you. ²⁰ Get up, go downstairs, and go with them without hesitation. Don’t worry, for I have sent them.”
 ²¹ So Peter went down and said, “I’m the man you are looking for. Why have you come?”
 ²² They said, “We were sent by Cornelius, a Roman officer. He is a devout and God-fearing man, well respected by all the Jews. A holy angel instructed him to summon you to his house so that he can hear your message.” ²³ So Peter invited the men to stay for the night. The next day he went with them, accompanied by some of the brothers from Joppa.

So something obvious every now and then would be great.  God gives a vision to Peter about going beyond his comfort zone.. not so much with food.. but with people.  God wants Peter to reach out to the Gentiles.. to put aside the rules of old and his assumptions/stereotypes and help the non-believer and non-Jewish.  I was been praying for God's guidance and blessings on my path and now my new task and schedule as I pulled into the apprenticeship and up the stairs, when I walk into my classroom and my teacher announces that we will no longer have weekday classes for the remainder of the school year.  He has accepted a job with the railroad as a maintenance electrician and his work schedule will be 3 to 11pm so we will
now have class on Saturdays from 8 to 2:30. 

I was like little Nick in Honey I Shrunk the Kids when the light bulb finally turned on and it made sense.  Want obvious..?  How's that for you?  Hmmm... let's recap.

1.  Got laid off from working at a sewage treatment plant that kept getting me sick, so now what will I do with all this free time.

      1a.  Taking over the reigns of a youth group will require a bit of time initially to get setup and get the ball rolling.

2.  I've been awfully lonely lately being home alone all day.  And I need to do something better with my day than lying around the house.
      2a.  Plenty to be done in youth and children's ministry.  And with the new church, moving, planning, etc I don't see myself being a lump anymore. 
3.  Being out of work doesn't pay as much as working, I need to find something to help get us by.  And if it can be under 20hrs I can still receive some unemployment benefits.  Oh, and if it can be enjoyable that would be a plus!
     3a.  Starting this Sunday I will be getting paid for the volunteer work I already do for the children's ministry and I will get to work with the youth group (And I'll enjoy that!)
4.   This apprenticeship class thing is a real drag.  I'm not going to have any nights off during the week.
     4a.  Would Saturdays be okay with you?  You're a morning person and you're up early anyways.  Why not get it all out of the way in one day?  By the time you're done with class your lovely wife will be rested up enough and you'll have more breathing room during your work week.



Now don't blow it Jason.  You've been patient and I've worked it all out for you.. make me proud, son.

I won't Father.. thank you.