Unemployed or Opportunity?

I have found myself pondering the outcome of a conversation I had last week. I was notified by my employer that I would no longer be on the team as of July 30th. The news caught me by surprise as I examined the faces in the room realizing that their was compassion and empathy for what needed to be said. This is a tough economy and being unemployed is no longer just a scary thing, it can be a life changing thing...

What do I do?
Where do I go?
What does God want me to do?
Is this the opportunity for me to explore what I am truly called to do, not just what jobs people think I am good at or that my personality fits?

Unemployment or a call to seek something bigger...?

In a still moment...

The rain touches down on the leaves. One drop, then another, and another. The leaves patiently wait for the next drop. They don’t falter, they don’t stray. And when there is not rain they remain still, quiet and hopeful. Their color changes from a light ivy green to a rich sage. The water changes them, but yet they never change who they are. Does a leaf every wish it were a branch? Or a branch a leaf? I think if I were a branch, I may be jealous of the leaf.

“I, the branch, created you leaf. It is from my core that you were given life. And as you are now, I am the one that holds you up, keeps you alive and not lying dead on the ground. You are beautiful, strong against the winds and the rain, beautiful by glistening sun and still even in the midst of a the storm. I envy you, how you put yourself out there. You are not afraid. You are proud of who you are. You provide shade when it is too sunny, food when a caterpillar is hungry, water for the ants…rest for a struggling soul.”

Please don’t leaf…