adventures in candidating part 2

 I wrote a post a few years ago called adventures in candidating. you can read it here. candidating is a church word that means applying for a pastor job. Once again, I recently found myself candidating. I ended up at the most amazing church. I recently re-read my old post, and I completely agree with everything that I said before. This time, instead of lessons, I just have stories. here are a few that stood out- I'll label them by city:

The San Jose story- I talked with a church from San Jose for a long time. I sent them videos, I filled out their forms, I talked with the head of their search committee for hours. In the end, the head of the search committee told me, "our last youth pastor was a scientist- and he talked to the students about science. they were all really interested in what he had to say. that's really what we are looking for. as I review your talks, I don't see anything about science, so its going to be a no." 

The Cupertino story- I had a pastor reach out to me from Cupertino. He was thrilled to talk to me. He told me that we had so many friends in common and that I would make an excellent addition to their team. He told me that the discipleship pastor would reach out to me. The discipleship pastor reached out to me and had me give him my life story, my call to ministry, my philosophy of ministry and the basics of my theological beliefs. Then he told me that they weren't hiring right now, but maybe someday!

The Almaden story- There is a church in the Almaden neighborhood of San Jose. They called, and I was super-excited to meet with them. I have been following this church for years and have many friends who work there. I met with one of their pastors who told me that they had several campuses and several roles open. They seemed very interested in moving forward. Another one of their pastors called me a few days later and he was very excited to talk. He knew many of my former students and thought that I would be a great fit at the church. Then I got a call from their executive pastor who said, "we actually had people lined up for each of those open roles already. its not going to work out."

The Milpitas story- a head hunter contacted me and told me that he had a gut feeling that I was the right guy for a church in Milpitas. I did a video interview with them, and they kept asking me trick questions. They gave me scenarios that were trying to get to an answer to a question that they had. This church was really into NOT having women in leadership. They asked me, "if a middle school girl came up to you and told you that she felt called to be a leader in the church, what would you tell her?" I could tell that this was a trick question and that I was walking into a trap. I said, "I could pour water on that fire, or gasoline; and I'd find all the gasoline that I could and fan that flame." Their mind was instantly made up that I was the wrong guy for the job. The recruiter was furious.

There are more stories to share, but those are some of the more prominent ones in my mind. The entire experience was an emotional roller coaster. It was incredibly frustrating and heartbreaking at times. I found many of these churches to be very unprofessional in their processes. but then, there was:

The Castro Valley Story- I met the most amazing group of leaders, students, and volunteers

in Castro Valley. I fell in love with them and I hope to stay there forever.

God is love.
-rev-rob

 

reflections on 3 months of unemployment:

 

On April 26, I received a call that I had been laid off from my job at the church in Morgan Hill. Because of the Covid-19 virus, the church had lost income and had to make cuts. So- for the 2nd time in 3 years, I was looking for a job; only this time it was during a pandemic. Churches still aren't meeting, and none of them are hiring right now. The last time I looked for a job, I had several offers, and landed in Morgan Hill after 3 very long weeks of looking. I was hoping that I would find one even faster this time- not even close. It took almost 3 months. The church that I landed at is a dream church. I keep asking myself, "is this too good to be true?" This story had a happy ending, but getting there was quite an adventure. Here are some lessons that I learned in those 3 months:

:: I have come a long way, but I have a long way to go.

I consider myself to be spiritually mature- I'm a church leader, I have been following Christ for the majority of my life; but in those 3 months I discovered that I have work to do in the areas of trusting God with my security and my fears. There were moments when the anxiety of not having a job was overwhelming. I spent many, many hours out on a trail walking and praying. I did this partly to communicate with God, but mostly to get out of the house and to distract myself from my worries.

:: God is good, all the time.

We used to say that in the old days at church. I'm reminded of it in every season of life. Through those months, we never missed a meal, never missed a bill, never went without. God provided a new job and a new church for our family. He took care of us, just like He always has and always does.

:: my family is awesome.

I got to eat 3 meals a day with my family for months. We got to go to the coast several times. We shopped for plants at the plant nurseries, because they were some of the first business to re-open. We went on walks and drives. I was anxious and a little much to be with some days, but I'm grateful for that extended amount of time with them. Deanna supported me and cheered for me. She coached me and gave me her perspective. She listened to every detail of every interview. She is amazing.

:: restoration

I binge-watched a couple of shows about shops that restore broken cars, and in a lot of ways I was restored. I had been broken down by stress, anxiety and work. Over this time I ran at least a 10k every night for months. I dropped 30 pounds. I slept in, I napped. I slowed down. I'm ready to get back in the game and am feeling better than ever.

:: my call was confirmed.

I thought about doing all kinds of different work: kids ministry, working in the business world, even being a senior pastor, but I kept coming back to my call to work with students. I could never get away from it- and I never really even wanted to get away from it. That is the job that God made me for, and I have never been more convinced of it.

:: my former boss passed away

my former boss Galen went to heaven during that time. One night I was on a walk and I was thinking and praying and I began to remember his influence on me. He did so much for me- he was so patient with me. He was so kind to me. I remembered again how much I respected him and the way that he did ministry. For the last several years of my life, he was a real father-figure in my life. I remember praying on the night that he died, and thanking God for him; and wishing that I had spent more time with him in his last years. Not long before he died we had a special conversation over Facebook expressing our mutual admiration for each other.

:: team Rob

I have mentioned these friends before. They showed up in full force during my time of need.

Niki coached me on my interviewing. She gathered an army of former students to bombard my new boss with letters of recommendation on my behalf. She mobilized her family to pray for me.

Jonathan is an expert at underemployment insurance. His phone rings off the hook all day long. Many, many people call unemployment all day, every day to try and get their benefits, but Jonathan told me, "don't worry. I'm going to take care of all of this for you."

Chuck encouraged me with words that I hope to never forget: he said, "Rob, I want you to make a list of all of the students and a list of all of the parents and leaders that you have touched with your life. And when you do, please put my name and my son's name at the very top of that list." After I hung up the phone I just cried and cried at those thoughtful words.

Chris called me every single day. He listened to the ups and downs of every interview. He kept track of those details just as well as I did.

Trent was there to give me rare insight into the new people that I was meeting because of his vast network of friends.

Josh listened to me, cheered for me, and fought for me to get hired at his church. It didn't work out, but I'll never forget the efforts that he went to on my behalf.

Jeff advocated for me to get hired at his church. He took the decision-maker out to eat and campaigned on my behalf. He generously offered to send food to our home.

Many gave my family and I very generous and thoughtful monetary gifts. I am uncomfortable receiving any kind of gift, but they wouldn't take no for an answer. I was humbled and floored.

Mike, Grace, Tricia, John, Jim and Roxanne reached out nearly every day telling me that they were praying. They asked for updates and checking in after interviews.

Team Rob- I'm not worthy. They blow me away with their love and genuine concern. I want to be that for them and for so many more.

Millions of people are out of work right now, and my heart empathizes with them. I was reading in the book of Job the other day, and found a passage that spoke to my situation so clearly that I wrote every word of it in my journal:

Job 11:13: "“Yet if you devote your heart to him and stretch out your hands to him,  if you put away the sin that is in your hand and allow no evil to dwell in your tent,  then, free of fault, you will lift up your face; you will stand firm and without fear.  You will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by.  Life will be brighter than noonday, and darkness will become like morning. You will be secure, because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety. You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid, and many will court your favor."

That's my story-
and that's my prayer for everyone searching for a job in this time of insecurity.

God is love.
-rev-rob