A Career Change?

THERE'S little use in changing jobs for the sake of changing jobs. But sometimes even when progress demands such a step, we may hesitate because we fear a drop in salary or a loss of benefits--or just because we're uncertain about the future! If it's time for us to move on and we're unsure of how to proceed, we can trust God to lead the way.

Some years ago, I came to a point in my life where I wanted to change careers. The new work I yearned to take up offered little hope of much income for several years. I didn't have much in savings, either. But the new direction felt so right, I was sure it had to be God-impelled.

Yet I still worried about the financial wisdom of taking such a major step, so I turned to God and prayed to gain a more certain sense of direction. I adopted the attitude of the prophet Micah, in the Bible, who proclaimed, ``I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me'' (7:7). I resolved to keep listening for spiritual inspiration until I had no anxiety about what to do next. It was comforting to know I didn't have to make the decisions alone. God is an ever-present help. He's not physically present, as a friend might be, to offer verbal suggestions, but He's spiritually at hand and speaks directly to thought. By listening to Him, I would know what to do.

My prayer helped me to see that I couldn't truly trust God while simultaneously believing lack was inevitable. God, divine Spirit, is All-in-all, and He is an ever-present source of supply. Good has to appear when we understand this. And when we're expecting good to occur, we're more likely to notice it. I began shifting my attention from fearing lack to appreciating God's ready help and care for His creation. I could trust that my needs would be met because I was learning to trust Him.

Following God's direction is a lot like driving a car down the highway. To get to where we need to be, we have to look ahead and watch where we're going. If we daydream or don't pay proper attention to the road, we're liable to steer off the road and end up in a ditch! In daily life, fear, worry, and doubt would sidetrack our trust in God's unerring direction. They would plunge us into discouragement and hopelessness. We can prevent this from happening by putting all our faith in God, and keeping it there by paying attention to His loving guidance. With God's hand at the helm of thought, we can trust that all things will work together for good.

I made the career switch. In the short term, my income did drop considerably. But, sometimes in unexpected ways, all my needs were met. The new work was everything I had hoped it would be.

God abundantly provides the wisdom and foresight we need in order to keep progressing. In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, writes, ``Spirit imparts the understanding which uplifts consciousness and leads into all truth'' (p. 505). This God-given understanding overcomes limits and reveals new possibilities for productive living. It's coming to each of us continuously. We are God's beloved children; the beneficiaries of every good thing God has to bestow. The unlimited resources of Spirit are ours to claim.

Whether we think we need a change in careers or not, there's one fact that never changes--God's care for us is unfailing. He sustains every worthy effort and causes it to prosper, regardless of our occupation at the time. We don't have to fret, worry, or wonder about the future. God is meeting our every legitimate need now, and always.