LEAP!!!

I will never forget the night I opened the message.

I'd snuggled into bed, eager to give in to sleep, eyelids heavy, and checked my inbox one more time.

I saw the unopened message from my new friend, Jamie, and I clicked it open. A long explanation spilled over the screen...as she told me the job she had recently resigned was officially posted and she thought...maybe...I would be interested in applying.

In her delightfully thorough manner, she offered detailed explanations of what the job entailed and some additional reasons why she thought my particular giftings matched the job description.

Suddenly awake, I scooted up in bed and reread the email...and read it again...and again.

My logic kicked in, and I made a mental list of all the reasons this was not even worth considering.

* The job was an hour up the interstate from home...and I hated driving. And interstates. And snow-covered roads. And early mornings.

* I'd been at my job for eleven years, and while there's probably really no such thing as job security, I felt as safe as I could in my position.

* The housing market was TERRIBLE - so the probability of selling my home was...slim to none.

* If it did sell...starting over in a brand new city, in which I knew no one...seemed scary.

And yet, for all the logic, I knew I'd been praying for a while to have an opportunity to change jobs. Who was I to beg for that and then tell God His potential answer was lacking in some way?

I read the email again. Jamie had confidence in me. It poured from the screen. She knew more than I did...that I really did have what it would take.

I sent the email to my brother-in-law, who has known me since I was five and truly gets me. He responded, "It seems to me this job was made for you. Go for it."

And so I typed up a resume {with shaking fingers} and submitted it.

I was called for an interview, and after it happened, I confided in my friend, Judy, that I wasn't sure I really did have the skills they were looking for. As the days passed and phone remained silent, I worried there would be no second interview. Judy told me to keep waiting.

And they called. Judy shook her head and said, "Girl, I bet anything you're the only one they call back for a second interview."

I dismissed THAT idea in about a second flat.

But she was right. I went back for the second interview and walked out with a job.

When I delivered my resignation letter to my boss, she read it while I waited, and when her eyes met mine, I found sadness competing with joy. "I hate this," she said to me. "You know I hate this. You know I don't want you to go. But you have to go. You HAVE to go. This is perfect for you. You will love this and you will do well. You have to go. But I hate it."

So I packed up my office and walked away from an eleven year battle with a calculator and into a new life as a radio producer.

Scared out of my mind, I walked boldly forward, carried on the encouraging words of my friends. Those who saw in me what I couldn't see in myself and spoke it out loud when I couldn't muster it up on my own. Those who pushed me, even when pushing meant losing me.

Almost exactly three years down the road, I'm so, so thankful for those who urged me to leap into the unknown. What fun it's been to work at the station, meet so many wonderful people, form new friendships, and find I had within me strengths I never even knew.

To you who urged me to leap...from Jamie to Jeff to Judy and so many more...thank you.

First day of work: July 5, 2011