UPDATE: I've fixed a few things in the post...after a gentle rebuke and an exhortation from a friend :)
Okay so this will be a longish post...but I MUST get it out...for memories sake.
This blog is sorta like my journal. I guess it is my journal.
Sometimes...I go back and look at posts from a long time ago. And it brings all sorts of emotions to the surface. Joy...sorrow...laughter...tears...awe & wonder...peace. Cuz I get to see the mighty hand of the Lord weaving the tapestry of our lives.
So....we came to LA thinking Bradley was gonna be acting. Not
right away...but
some time soonish.
When things took longer than anticipated...he took a day job. He was doing well...moving along nicely...trained...promised things....opportunities....promotions......advancements...etc...
...then suddenly the job went away.
Completely unexpected. Out of the blue.
Like one day it was there and the next day it was not.
All because one guy...the guy with decision making power lied and manipulated. His reasons? No clue. Not worth pursuing.
Rather than freaking out...we sorta clearly knew the Lord was in it. There was no way Brad was gonna be acting again if he progressed within this company.
Since then...he's done everything he possibly can to try to find acting work.
And other work....like casting work...production work...so many resumes have been sent out...so many phone calls.
Silence.
That brings us to yesterday.....
We had an appointment to get to in Costa Mesa. Like an hour away...with a financial planner.
The girls were settled with things to do at home...we hopped in the car and we took off. The road was clear...it was after 10:00 so there was no traffic. All good. We had our questions in mind. The big bullet points things we wanted to hit upon. We had already met with our banking institution as we've been thinking quite deeply... for a while now... about responsible things ...like
Do we sell the house or not sell the house????? It brings in income...and the market is improving...so the value of it is rising...but could we do better in the stock market?
Whomever this financial planning group was...we knew the recommend came from our banking institution and them....we trust. Long time relationship. Multi-generational relationship etc.
We are driving along at peace with the
out of work season we are in and
holding our future with open hands...
excited to see how
the Lord will work this all out...all the while...wanting to be good stewards of what we do have...so knowing we must take steps to be faithful and diligent.
The car starts feeling weird. It's slowing down. On the freeway.
Brad says..."Oh NO! We're out of gas????!!????"
I had known we were on empty...meant to fill it up after my trip to the $0.99 Store the day before ...but never did. He was so distracted with gathering paperwork and directions to Costa Mesa...he never even looked at the gas gauge.
Here we were in Downey...running out of gas. Brad managed to pull off the freeway and make a right hand turn on fumes. That move landed us directly in front of a large church.
OH mY GoD! You are so good to us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WE ARE STUPID PEOPLE, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT. BUT YOU ARE FAITHFUL TO US, LORD!!!!!!
WE RUN OUT OF GAS AND YOU HAVE IT HAPPEN RIGHT IN FRONT OF A LARGE CHURCH!!!!!!!!!!!! WHERE THERE ARE LOTS OF RESOURCES SO THEY WILL FOR SURE HAVE A WAY TO HELP US!!!!!!!
Brad leaves me in the car with the hazards blinking and he heads for the church office.
Not 5 minutes later...I see him walking towards the car empty handed. Then he does a double take and stops to talk to some guy who just pulled into the parking lot in a mini van...and returns to me with a huge smile and a gas can. A gas can filled with gasoline!
The pastor was of no help. BUT...Junior...(AN AUTO PARTS SUPPLY COMPANY EMPLOYEE wearing his grease stained work shirt!!!!!!)... a guy picking up his daughter from pre-school was.
Junior not only had a gas can filled with gasoline but when the engine wouldn't turn over...he knew how to get the air out of our tank so that the car would start again.
Junior got down on the ground and under our car to make it happen.
Brad kept apologizing for not having any cash...but only a debit card on him. Junior just smiled and said..."Don't worry about it. It's no problem."
He pointed us to the nearest gas station and not 15 minutes after our unexpected detour...we drove away. I was blowing him
kisses until he disappeared from view.
After filling the tank...I googled the church and called the office as Brad navigated us back onto the freeway.
Secretary: Hello...(UPDATED: BLAH BLAH BLAH) Church.
Me: Hi. My name is Dawn. My husband, Bradley was just in your office asking for help from your POD. Can I please speak to him?
Secretary: Ummmmm..... sure.
(wait wait wait)
POD: Hello.
Me: Hi. My name is Dawn. My husband, Bradley was just in your office asking for help after our car ran out of gas in front of your church. Are you the gentleman he spoke with?
POD: Yes.
Me: Well..I must tell you something. We are distracted today...on our way to a meeting...and when we ran out of gas...stupid thing to do, I know...BUT when we did....we were so excited that the Lord had provided help for us by having you...a church... be RIGHT THERE that we laughed out loud at His provision. Sadly though...you were of no help whatsoever. When Bradley explained our situation...you remained unhelpful. When he asked you if you had a gas can on campus. You said "No." A one word answer. When he asked you if there was a maintenance department...maybe someone there who could be of help...you said..."no." Another one word answer. When he said "Well, who blows the leaves off your grounds? Maybe they have some gas???" You said, "The gardeners." When he asked if maybe someone could give him a quick ride to the nearest gas station you said, "No."
(no response)
Me: All this to say...Sir...today you were a really crappy witness. We are believers but what if we had not been? You failed miserably in this...but there is good news. There is a man in your parking lot...named Junior. His kid goes to school here. He is amazing! We are so thankful for him. You should really meet him.
(long pause)
POD: Well, thank you for your input.
Me: You are welcome. Have a great day.
(click)
(UPDATE: This guy was having none of us. Not outwardly anyway. He appeared to be hard-hearted with Brad. He appeared to be hard-hearted with me.)
Brad and I are amazed by the Lord's provision. It did not come from an expected source. But it came.
We pull up to the office building in Costa Mesa and pray before entering. We pray for wisdom. We pray for discernment. We pray for our finances. For our future.
We know nothing about this company. Nothing.
Well, Brad knows a little. Cuz he did some research. I know nothing.
Then...just before we enter...Brad tells me that two of the guys in the office received their educations at Masters.
AT MASTERS!
k... might not mean much...but MASTERS! It might mean something. Like the Lord has gone before us...in this whole financial planning/provision thing.
We spent two hours discussing matters with the guy assigned to us. He was great. Knowledgeable...helpful...etc. etc. etc.
Towards the end of the meeting...as we were sort of wrapping up...I asked him which of the 2 guys in the office were Masters guys. He named them and said, "Of course" ...when I asked if it was a possibility that we meet them.
One guy was just down the hall so he called him in.
The things I am interested in when discussing $/investments...as a follower of Christ...that's what I wanted to mention to this Masters guy. Things like...Are you guys okay with us not investing in let's say a pharmaceutical company which would be building up an industry which I am attempting to tear down here on earth? Or...let's say there's a company out there hat has an obvious liberal agenda...would you guys be fine with us saying THAT company is a NO GO for us as they are supporting the very things that make us want to puke?
This Masters guy was AWESOME! I don't know how many opportunities he gets to discuss his faith publicly in this office...but he went for it. With a gusto. Not ashamed in any way of the gospel and his calling to the professional world of finance.
Our guy ...the guy we had just spent two hours with...sat politely and listened to us as we went on and on about the Lord. I have no idea where he is at with the Lord...but after us telling the Masters guy the whole running out of gas story..he had a better idea of who we are and where we are at with the Lord. And who his colleague is...and where he is at with the Lord.
On the way out to our car...after being validated...in the elevator...Brad gets a text message from his agent.
All this to say...
As far as provision goes...
The Lord has gone before Bradley and I.
He has a plan for us. It is for our good and His glory.
We have no idea how the Lord used us in the (UPDATED: BLAH BLAH BLAH) Church of Downey today... (UPDATE: We all fall short and error daily and usually hourly) or in that financial office...but He is at work.
And He has it all under control.
BEST part of that text from Brad's loyal fan. It was sent from Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan! Who the heCk has fans in Kazakhstan???????? idk...the out of work actor who cannot get arrested in Hollywood who has a kid from Kazakhstan and made a documentary film about his Kazakh adoption story maybe??????
It's a weaving. We are living in a tapestry.
There is a WEAVER.
Jehovah Jireh.
Woke up to this from Ozzie today...
