In The Trenches

So here's the latest from the Eastern edge of Asia. Most of you heard about my escape from the burning building on Monday. What we hesitated to say anything about because it was so much worse than that is that Eileen got fired the same day two hours before the big adventure began.

So if you're ever wondering labor laws don't exist here. Two weeks before her supervisor told her she was excellent in the class and that her daily plans were the most organized he has seen. She missed a few days of school because she was sick and lost her voice. Last Thursday her supervisor sat her down to say her Korean manager (who has a reputation for being nasty when she chooses) didn't like that she sits from time to time to rest her knee when she's teaching. Monday morning she came in and Tim her manager told her that she was done.

It's so bizarre that we have to say God had this planned from the beginning. We spent a week being very angry and confused never mind dealing with the tension of escaping the fire. Terry called us from home which was good timing for encouragement. Truly after only a week we feel like God is still looking after us and this is just part of the path he has us walking on. I didn't think we were even capable of getting over something like this so quickly. It was interesting that in the sermon on Sunday the pastor spoke about tests of faith and mentioned that God already knows how we will respond to trials. It is also important for us to see the growth that God has already gained inside us by how we respond to these tests.

Don't get me wrong there are still negative emotions there under the surface waiting to bust through but we feel grace to work through them and preserver.

PART II - ONE DAY LATER....

So this is the next day and Eileen left me a note at work today that she would not be home until later. When she got home she informed me that she had been teaching for 3 hours today and before she left for the day she took the job. It sounds fantastic because she teaches 3 hours per day and makes 3/4 of my 8 hour wages. They have a special teachers chair at the front of all the classrooms and they couldn't care less if she sits the whole day while teaching. At the end of Feb she could go full time but the part time pays better so we will see what she does then.

Wow, did we just learn to believe that God has plans even when its very painful in the short term. I wish all of life's lessons worked themselves out this quickly. I know so many people were praying for us so thank you all for your support from afar. We are just feeling very blessed.

One thought that Eileen and I held onto for the last 9 days is that Eileen's Korean manager doesn't have any authority that did not come from God. She may not know this but whether she decides to use her authority for good or evil her power has always rested with a higher authority.