Rest and Trust
I recently went through a season of rest. I had to put my full trust in God because even though it was planned, there were several obstacles that I would need His help with. The timing of the new season was perfect, and the result was beautiful
When I quit my corporate job at the age of 41 to travel the world for a year, it was 10 months before the world started working from home. God had prepared me to walk away from my job at the perfect time before the world shut down and Zoom became a household name. If I had still been working a corporate job when this happened, I would not have done well mentally because I struggle with being at home all day in an empty house.
Before I turned in my resignation at work, I had to carefully consider the obstacles which would arise once I quit. One of the first obstacles was my finances. My savings made me financially prepared for the duration of my planned time off, and I was equipped to be able to sustain for another year in case it took me that long to find a new job. Regardless of the preparation, I still had to rely on God financially, because what if something happened where I had to spend a large amount of my savings? Or what if I didn’t find a new job before my savings ran out?
Another obstacle I had to think about during my season of rest was loneliness which was going to be present in several areas of my life. Since I was going to be traveling alone, the only people I would have interactions with while on a road trip were the hotel clerks and restaurant staff, and an occasional tourist if we decided to strike up a conversation. I like to be around people so I knew this was going to be a struggle for me.
I also knew I was going to be isolated at home for longer periods of time so I had to be able to cope with the loneliness at home. I have never been one who enjoys being at home alone. When I was working an 8-5 job, I only had to manage the quietness in the evenings after work. And on the weekends, I typically went anywhere but home to avoid the loneliness of an empty house. But now that I didn’t have a job, I would be faced with an extended amount of time in the house when I wasn’t traveling. During my time off, it took work on both my part and God’s, but I’m happy to report I have finally found joy in being at home.
I love human connections and building relationships. This was one of my favorite things about my corporate job because I was able to see people and friends every day. So, this was another obstacle I had to find a solution for. Actually, I should say another obstacle I had to trust God with. I should have never doubted He would put me in the right places at the right times to meet new people and make new connections. With my flexible hours and freedom to choose my schedule, I was able to be involved at church during the day and this allowed for new connections. I also had additional time for volunteering which created new connections as well. Connections that I thought wouldn’t exist because I wasn’t working. But little did I know that God was going to use these connections to build something new.
When I left the corporate world, I had NO idea what my next career move would be. I didn’t know if it would be another corporate job, working with a non-profit, starting my own business, a traveling job, or a work-from-home job. When I say I had no clue, I really mean ZERO clue. But I trusted God completely with this decision and knew He would have something waiting for me at the end of my planned year off.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5)
During my travels, it was just me and the open road. This gave me a lot of time to think, as well as get closer to God. My time away from the busyness and stress gave my mind time to rest. The kind of rest that lets your thoughts slow down long enough to “see” things that have been there all along but I was too occupied to notice. Some of those things were physically seen with my eyes. And some were things I “saw” about myself because I was no longer distracted by the noise of a stressful job. A job that lacked passion, even though it’s what I studied in college and received my degree in. I had been in the corporate world for almost 23 years, and it was the only job I’d ever had. But it was just a J-O-B for me and caused me to lose sight of my passions somewhere along the way.
During the process of trying to find my passions, I also joined a new church and soon began volunteering on the audio/visual team. On day 1 of volunteering, I was reminded that my passions were photography and videography. They had been a hobby of mine since high school, but with the long corporate hours I had been putting in over the years, I stopped taking pictures and stopped editing videos. God had opened the door for me to become a camera operator and work in the control room on Sunday mornings, and I quickly knew it was going to be part of my new career somehow. At that time, I still didn’t know how, or what my new career was going to be but I could see God working in me and showing me new opportunities.
As my travels and my time off were coming to an end, God was faithful in His next plan for me. I stumbled upon an opportunity to become a small business owner. Everything about it seemed to fit me well and incorporated my passions for photography and videography. So, a year after quitting my corporate job and right on schedule with my plans, I started my own real estate photography business.
Leaving my corporate job never gave me a feeling of fear and I never regretted my decision. It was the first time in many years that I felt absolute peace about a decision. I knew, without a doubt, the move was orchestrated by God. Therefore, I trusted Him with every step of it. Steps that I didn’t know yet, or need to know. All I knew was I had to take the first step in order to find out the next one. Once I was obedient with the first step of faith and quit my job, God began leading me to the others.
Putting my trust in God showed me the perfect time for tearing things down by quitting my corporate job, and the perfect time for building back up when starting a new career. If it weren’t for my trust in God, I would still be working in a passionless 8-5 job. Don’t be afraid to step out in faith in order to find happiness!