Rich Jandt Adventure #2

What an exciting week I just had.

I had to use a week of vacation time or I was going to loose it. It’s tough actually finding 3 weeks a year to leave work and get paid while doing it, but this week was different.

On Tuesday I was called to the office and told I had received a customer complaint. In 4 years this was my first so I was surprised to hear that I was receiving my final written warning for it. Slightly bummed I knew I would be ok as long as I kept my head down, and worked hard.

I got home and my roommate told me that he was moving to Iowa in a week and I had a month to move out. Bummer also because I really like Pete, and I really hate moving.

I decided that I would focus on enjoying my time off, because worrying will not help anything. Besides, I have been though worse. I spent the next day eating tacos, and drinking beer, and the next day eating enchiladas and watching sci-fi movies. Friday I took a class on becoming a Certified Pool Operator. (Swimming pools, not the game of Billiards) On Saturday I played 18 holes of golf, and played wii all night. Sunday I went with a friend to Portland to work on his house. Sorry guys, I got a new phone and I don’t have any of your numbers, also I was there for less that 30 hours and had to do a lot of work. I get back home around 3am on Tuesday, thinking I would relax for the rest of my vacation.

However my roommate tells me that instead of an entire month, I had to be out of the house by Saturday, 4 days away. I have been very good about saving money, and have a couple thousand saved up for an emergency. Just like this one. I spend the next two days being told that I would not be rented to because I have an attack trained German Sheppard.

On Wednesday night I finally start to freak out about becoming homeless. I go back to work and order a beer, tell one of my great co-workers my plight, and she says, “I have a space for rent, it’s in my garage” I go look at it this morning and what she meant to say is that it was a completely finished room, wired with electricity and heat in the garage, with a huge beautiful fenced backyard, and she’s totally down with Baas. So I am moving in tonight.

Also One of my co-workers put in her notice and worked half of it, leaving a huge void to fill at work which pretty much shored up my position, taking me off the “next to go” list. Nothing better than being in trouble and someone else making a huge mistake, totally making everyone forget about you.

God's awesome providence and His love for us is amazing. Some of you might remember that this kind of thing has happened to me before, and just like last time I was taken care of.

God's little plan

I often think about what God wants from me.

I think I have the basics down, love God, Love my neighbor, do not forsake the assembly. But what else is there?

I guess this is really a two part question, the first being what are the issues in the Bible that are key to my salvation? The second is what specific actions do I need to do?

The day of my conversion, I had a dream. I was standing before the throne, God was telling me something… and all I remember is saying “Yes I will do that.” I have been waiting for years and God hasn’t come down and told me yet what he wants. I’ve asked, prayed, fasted, casted lots, and yet still to this day I do not have a clear calling.

What are our salvation issues? What do we need to live in our lives? What do we need to teach? What do we need to produce? There are a lot of parables in the Bible about producing fruit, and being part of the vine, but what the crap does that mean? I’m not looking for the cookie cutter answers I got in Sunday School, or the preset answers I heard in college about going to church, or acting this way or that way.

Just the basic how do I attain a relationship with God? How do I experience him in a meaningful way? I only ask because I can’t find God in those places I learned about in school. I can’t find him in my local Coc. I didn’t find him at any Church here in Bend. The best Church experience I’ve had so far was Imago church in P-town. I see God in nature, I see God in Science I don’t understand. I see God in personal relationships I have with my friends. I even see God in food and beer.

What do you feel you need to do? What are your salvation issues?