2017 Part One - New Job

For most of the 11 years my wife has known me, I've been a student.  We met when I had just started working on a business degree part-time in 2006.  It took 5 years of hard work and sacrifice to earn that degree, but the result was worth it.  My wife took on more than her share of housework and parenting while I studied.  She never complained and was a constant source of encouragement for me.  After graduation, I was blessed with a series of promotions that allowed us to buy our first home and pay for the birth of our first child.  We were amazed by what God had helped us to accomplish as the sun set on our twenties.  In 2013, we decided that our long-term goals would be easier to achieve if I went on to earn my MBA.  My best friend, Scott, had the same idea, so we decided to apply to graduate school together.  It was amazing to have him as my classmate, and surreal when we attended graduation together just 2 short years later.

A year before earning my MBA, I applied for another promotion.  It seemed as though it could be my dream job.  I thought it was the opportunity that would finally allow us to live on my income and allow my wife to become a full-time mom.  I also thought it would be the type of job that would challenge me in many exciting ways.  It almost was.  I got the job and, for awhile, it was everything I'd hoped it would be.  I worked for a great leader and learned more in 6 months than I had in the previous 6 years, but it was short-lived.  A few months after earning my MBA, change happened.  Through a bizarre twist of events, my boss was fired, our team was disbanded, and I found myself passively demoted several levels, stripped of 10% of my pay, and working for one of the most awful people I've ever met.  I had taken a chance, but it didn't work out.  I was miserable, but thankfully God had a plan.
Within a year, I was fortunate to get the opportunity to make a lateral move into IT, working for another great leader with a fun team.  It took a lot of the sting out of my daily work life, but the damage had already been done.  My passion for my work and for the company that had gainfully employed me for more than 17 years was gone.  I knew it was time to start looking for a new career outside my company.
Dara and I hoped and prayed that I could find a new career locally so that we didn't have to move.  Our family had really put down roots and we had just welcomed our newest addition, Fletcher, into this world.  We were plugged into an incredible church family and, other than my job, life was absolutely perfect.  I occasionally dropped hints to Dara that we might have to consider relocating in order to find my new career, but she didn't bite.  For months she made it clear that, although we had worked so hard to put me through school, there were more reasons for us to stay put.  She was right.  I didn't know it at the time, but God was working in her heart too.
In December 2016, with no warning at all, she said to me "I think God wants me to stay at home with the kids, and I know we're going to have to move in order to make that happen.  I think we can consider moving."  I was pumped and immediately got to work.  I diligently studied and applied what I learned from Dick Bolle's Flower Exercise and renowned job-hunting and career-changing bible, which gave me precise direction on what my next career should be (I highly recommend his book - it was amazingly helpful).  Dara and I spent some time discussing potential destinations (Orlando, FL and Lancaster, PA were at the top of our list) and I expanded my job search.  That January, Scott started a new job with a building products manufacturer in Lancaster, PA.  From a logistics standpoint, Lancaster was certainly an easier move than Orlando.  It would also be awesome to live so close to my best friend.  The right position at this company would keep me in an industry in which I had nearly two decades of experience.  I asked him to keep me updated on how he liked the company and the people who worked there.  In a very short period of time, his feedback convinced me that it was definitely worth a shot.  I found and applied to three different job openings at his company.  Up to that point, I had applied for 17 jobs in 3 different states, resulting in only a pair of phone screens but not even a single interview.  My expectations were low, but I stayed patient and prayerful.
Two months after applying, I was finally contacted by one of the company's recruiters.  That call began a 3-month process of phone and in-person interviews.  I was blessed to have close friends and former colleagues who had made similar transitions, and were willing give me a lot of incredible advice and support throughout the process.  Everything about the job seemed perfect - it would be immensely challenging, but it would also leverage my strengths and experience in a way that I knew I'd enjoy.  I continued to wait and pray. 
Just as Charlotte finished her last days of the school year, I received an offer.  Now, in "Dave's Plan", the ideal opportunity would help us to relocate and would pay enough to replace Dara's income so that she could be a full-time mom.  An offer like that would have made the decision very easy for us.  Their offer was reasonable, but was much less than what we were hoping for.  They wouldn't budge on my counter.  We prayed hard about this, asking God to make it clear to us if we could make this huge transition.  We thought back to December when we started this process.  We reminded ourselves that we weren't making this change for the money, but primarily to spend more time with our children. When we took a harder look at our budget and trimmed it down to just our necessities, it almost exactly matched their offer.  I realized that this was God making it clear to us that he would provide what we needed.  Of course it wouldn't be an easy decision; it would require faith and sacrifice.  We decided to be faithful enough to take this opportunity as the blessing that it truly was  I got an amazing new job, our family found a new town, and our children get to be with at least one of us every day.  As I walk into work each day, I thank God for this amazing life and trust Him with whatever comes next.