I have been getting on the job training as a Christian educator for over 5 years through my church and completed my work toward certification as a Christian educator in May. But recently, as I began to explore the possibility of ordination as a deacon, I opted for the counseling route instead of the Christian education route.
When I first began the masters in counseling I thought I was getting additional training to make me more effective in Christian education. However, as I explored careers in counseling, I found that there was a better match with my desire to work in a healing mode with counseling than with Christian education alone. The two endeavors are perfectly compatible and one easily flows into the other.
Now I have the opportunity to bring them together in a Christian environment outside the church. I’ve accepted a position as program coordinator for a women’s residential recovery program through a local rescue mission. There will be considerably more opportunity to do counseling than I would get as the church’s Christian education director alone. I can still do part of the work of Christian education, which I love. But I will get the opportunity to utilize and hone the counseling skills gleaned from the last year and half of graduate school.
I feel like the work I’ve been moving toward for the last six years is finally becoming real. God is good.
Today I ordered a little plaque that lists God’s 3 answers to prayer:
– Yes.
– Not yet.
– I have a better plan.
I have the sense that, in redirecting me from full time church work for the time being toward this recovery ministry, God is saying “I have a better plan.” I am looking forward to growing into this role.