Ryan's New Job!

We have some exciting news to share! Ryan has a new job!

As most of you know, when we left WillowBridge, neither of us had a new job lined up to go to, and to be transparent, that's very out of character for us. We are planners, through and through, so to leave without a forward plan was brand new territory for both of us. It was time for us to leave WillowBridge, and we knew that, but we didn't know what God had ahead.

Before we left WillowBridge - in fact, before we even turned in our resignation - we were having conversations with an organization about the possibility of working there, and we explored other possibilities as they came along, too. The Lord has closed every door for me so far, and most closed for Ryan as well. We always planned to take a little time off, simply because our bodies, minds, and hearts needed that time to recover from the fast pace and intense atmosphere of our work at WillowBridge, but we didn't plan to stay "retired" for too long. (Quick side note: we loved our taste of retirement and think we will quite enjoy it when it arrives for real in many years.)

Our biggest prayer as we have made this transition has been that we would be able to continue in ministry of some sort. We also hoped we could work together again, because that was our favorite, but we knew that was probably unlikely. Continuing in ministry, though, was a huge prayer for us.

About a month ago, we had a meeting with an organization called Love INC. (INC stands for In the Name of Christ). It's a national organization, but there is a local chapter near us. The executive director of the local chapter is retiring and they were searching for a new director to move forward with the ministry. Our meeting with her was encouraging, eye opening, and energizing. We both left with a bit of a spring in our step that day. Ryan particularly felt called to apply, and they interviewed him a short time later. They offered him the position, and his first day was this past Monday. 

I haven't blogged about it before now, because I wanted to wait until he actually spent a few days at work and knew more about what he would be doing! 

The core function of Love INC is to connect individuals in need in the community with churches, volunteers, and organizations that could help meet those needs. You can read more about that here, if you'd like. As time goes by, there are additional modes of relationship and ministry that the local chapters could add if they have the resources to provide them! 

Because we are new to the community and only know a handful of people, part of Ryan's work in the first few weeks will center around meeting the pastors and other community leaders who might partner with Love INC. Lots of networking! (Fortunately, he is very good at that.) He also has much to learn about what they've done over the past few years - fundraising, meeting needs, and more. He'll also have to learn everything needed to be a director through training from the local and national office and, of course, other duties as assigned. :) 

I am so incredibly proud of him for the enthusiasm and drive he has for this work. He has some great ideas and a deep desire to make a positive impact on our new community. I know he will do a GREAT job! And the work we have done for the past two years at WillowBridge has greatly prepared him for what he will do in this next season. 

(Quick side note: at this time, I still do not have a job, and I'm not worried or upset. I know God has the right thing in the right time, and I'm excited to see what it is. But I'm also excited that even though I'm not an official part of the Love INC staff, Ryan wants me to help him with parts of his job. He's not really into social media, and even though he is a good writer, he doesn't enjoy it, so I'll be helping him with those things. I'll pitch in with other creative efforts, too. I'm as excited as he is!)

Want to see some pictures from his very first day? 

Because...of course:

Goodbyes that morning were HARD. This is the first time ever in Lexi's life that the word going to work was introduced. She was right beside us for all of our work days at WillowBridge, and now she's gotten used to our "retirement." She knew something was up, but she didn't know what. And I'm pretty sure it was as tough on Ryan to say goodbye as it was for the two of us! (This is the first time since 2016 that Ryan and I have been truly APART during the day.) 

He put on his shoes, and she was SURE they were headed out for a walk. Explaining that one was super fun.

I tried to cheer her up by taking her for a long walk and spending extra time with her, but she was super sad for much of the day. Can't blame her there. ALL of us cried, except Braeya. She napped it off. ;)

Ryan sent some pictures throughout the day. He spent time in his new office and got some coffee over his lunch break. 

He said he had a great day. He was super excited about the future and the possibilities and talked about his ideas for a long time when he got home! I was so happy to hear every single one!

And she was just happy to see HIM!

And to wrap up our day, we attended a soccer event to support some friends, and Ryan was able to meet some of the community pastors that he'll network with in this new job!

A good first day indeed!