Another Job (A new one, not an additional one)

A few days ago I posted that I had gotten a job...and I did...but now I have another one. Here's the story:

Not too long ago, I saw a posting for a Family Engagement Specialist/Migrant Educator position with a local school district. It sounded really interesting because it called for working with families and the Latino population. For those of you who don't know, I have a HUGE heart for the Latino community. I've worked with Latino kids and parents (specifically immigrants) in various settings and God has given me a great desire to serve this population (it helps that I speak Spanish). Anyway, I eagerly applied for this job and was offered an interview. The problem was that I had to give my decision to the child development center before I would hear back anything from this job. I like to think that I had prayed for God's will in the matter, but the more I think about it, the more I'm incolined to believe that I just took the easier route. I hadn't felt that great about my interview for the Family Engagement Specialis/Migrant Educator position and wasn't confident that they would offer me the job...so instead of trusting God with it, I made the easier decision and took the job that was guaranteed. Just to clarify though, I genuinely was excited about the child center job and felt very blessed to have the opportunity (especially since it involved kids/teaching/Spanish). However, I knew it wouldn't be the job I'd be holding for years on end because it wasn't full time employment (35 hours a week).

So anyway, I went ahead and accepted the job at the child center and apart from a few misgivings here and there (as in, is this really where God wants me?) I felt pretty good about it. Then, a few days ago I received a phonce call from the school district offering me the Family Engagement Specialist/Migrant Educator position. Boy was I shocked! My mind instantly went into a frenzy trying to figure out what I would do. After talking to my husband, who gently counseled me to take it to the Lord, I calmed down a bit and was able to think rationally.

One of my biggest worries was that if I retracted my decision to work at the child center, I would be acting dishonorably. I really didn't want to leave them in a bad situation. However, the same day I got the job offer with the school district, I also found out the child center was moving their opening date back by at least a week (their building was still under construction). This would give them almost two and a half weeks to find a replacement (that's like a "two week notice" isn't it?) not to mention that I was told they'd had hundreds of applicants for the job. Knowing this, I felt more assured that I wouldn't be leaving them high and dry.

The more I thought and prayed about it, the more I felt that I should accept the new job offer. I did have some typical concerns ("What if I don't know what I'm doing? What if I'm not good enough? Will I even know how to serve these families adequately?") However, after discussing it with Allen, I grew in confidence over this new job (my hubby has such a gift for growing confidence in me...who knew words like "You'll learn" could be so powerful :) ). I called to accept the job, and got the confirmation a day later. Oh, and I also (very apologetically) told the child center that I wouldn't be working with them and they were extremely gracious and understanding about it and wished me the best of luck. What a relief it was to have their support and to know that I wasn't leaving them in a tough situation.

I have "intake" (something like orientation?) tomorrow and Thursday is my first official day...I'm super nervous!

I'm a "list person" so here's a list of a few reasons (among others) why I've accepted this job:

-I get to work with families (yay!)
-I get to work with the Latino population (another yay!...again, I have a huge heart for the Latino population and have been looking for a way to serve them, even if just through volunteer work, since we moved here.
-I get to work in education (the other job offered me this as well, just in a different way).

There are a whole plethora of other reasons too, but I think this post is long enough as it is. If you made it through the whole post, you deserve to buy yourself a donut! (I love donuts).