The Bottom Line, Ministries Christian News, Articles, & Poetry 
‘In the day of my trouble I will call to You, for You will answer me.’ Psalm 86:7 (NIV
The past few years I have seen several friends go through the loss of a job. I have never in my life known so many people who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. It is hard to watch. It is hard to imagine it happening to me.
Most of my friends are Christians. And I have heard more than one of them say these words, ‘When one door closes, God opens another that is even better.’ I admire that faith, that spirit, that confidence. I also hear, ‘God has a plan for my life, I know it.’ This attitude of knowing God will supply a new job, one that is even better than the one lost, blesses me when I know that the person saying it is experiencing difficult times.
Some of my friends lose their jobs and get new ones almost immediately. But others…they have been jobless for several years. And still others have taken temp jobs, where they know they will work for a specific period of time. Sometimes they are renewed, right at the end of their term. They have no guarantees of tomorrow, and no benefits. They travel from temp agency to temp agency, enlisting in several, so that they will hopefully have a job to go to, no matter what it may be, no matter for how long. They still look for and hope for that permanent position they long for.
It is hard, indeed, for me to watch. I have never experienced a job loss. I have been fortunate to have had several long-term positions throughout my life, and in the same field. There was a time when I did depend on temp positions, by choice, because of a family circumstance, and it served us well. I had the freedom to attend to our needs, and I always had jobs. I always worked for people who understood my situation. Once the situation was resolved, I was able to quickly go back to working full-time once again. But I have never experienced losing a job. I hope I never do, but if it should happen, I pray I can handle it as some of my friends have, and are.
No matter what the circumstances, if a door closes, one must accept it. Moving ahead in faith is the best course to take. Once that door is shut, the new doors will begin to appear. Sometimes they open quickly, but often they do not. When one is faithful and trusts God, He will honor His promise to provide for His own, even in the hard times. I have watched, and I have seen. His provision is enough, His wisdom is perfect, and His door is always open.
‘Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” ‘ Matthew 6:26 (NIV)
I, too, am thankful for the doors God has always kept open for me during my 30 year career as a social worker. However, I am just as joyful for Him shutting that door. People wondered when I retired early how I was going to make it. Funny, I was not worried, because I had grown confident during all those years of economic turmoil paying bills and trying to put my daughter through college, that God would always supply my needs according to His word. So now I am happily retired, and people are still wondering and asking how are you making it. I respond gladly, God will take care of you!