Dawn Gonzalez
About the Author

Dawn rears teenage PKs in Columbia, SC with her pastor-husband of 22 years. Thinking life tastes better with Cuban coffee, she is reader of books, writer of life's marvels and chief dishwasher.

(in)side DaySpring: things we love
& you will too!
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(in)side DaySpring:
things we love
& you will too!
Find more at
DaySpring.com
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Comments

  1. Thank you for your testimony to His Faithfulness. We know His timing is perfect and purposeful, but it is often hard to see from our perspective. Your trust in Him brings Him glory!

    • Knowing God is at work in my heart is reassuring. His timing is always just right. I am in constant need of practice trusting Him. This is definitely one of those instances.

  2. I can soooo relate to you. I, too, have been in the belly of a whale – job searching many, many rejections. So many that you begin to believe them “Not good enough, no expereince, not the right person, stupid, dumb, etc.” and the list goes on.

    I know in His perfect timing I will eventually land a job that I enjoy and do well – now I’ll just be content where He has me.

    Thanks for the inspiring post!

    • Beth,
      My hope was that others in the same “boat” would find encouragement that God is indeed at work in them, and we all will “land” the job through the provision He has for each of us. (Aren’t these Jonah analogies fun?)

      Lord God, I pray for Beth right now, that you would walk with her in her own job searching journey. Your grace, your provision, your protection go before her. May she find rest in you through it all. Amen.

  3. Great writing, inspirational, convicting. The Lord certainly knows how to reduce us to the conformity of Christ, to God be the glory! If we are really looking we can see Him working through every circumstance. “..for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:13).

  4. I am taking a leap of faith and putting all my time & effort into building my Arbonne business. We are moving to another city next week, and every job I applied for left me feeling discouraged, hopeless and defeated. I don’t want to go somewhere, make mediocre money and not feel satisfied or fulfilled. I’ve sold Arbonne for 5 years, but it’s never been something I HAD to do. I have a blast doing it, I love helping people and it brings me so much joy. So, I’m jumping in and going to build my business, schedule my own time and I know this is the path God is leading me down. He’s forcing me way out of my comfort zone and whispering “Trust Me”… so I’m going to:)
    If you’d be at all interested in this opportunity I would love to share it with you. It’s an awesome company and I’m surrounded by the most motivational & inspiring people. Not a lot of other jobs can offer that!!
    Here is my website http://www.amyreinecke.myarbonne.com
    I’d love to help you, I want to build my business with other Christians who will advance the kingdom of God by helping others live their very best life.

  5. Dawn, I am going to be praying for you today!!! I went through my own struggle with finding a job this past spring and summer. I dealt with rejection after rejection and often wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that my previous experience was working for a campus ministry organization. The Lord is faithful though and He does receive glory when we speak out for Him in places where His name is taboo. He was faithful to provide me a job in JUST the right time and taught me invaluable lessons in the waiting. Praying for His provision and perfect timing for YOU!

    • Thanks, Elizabeth, for your encouraging words. Seeing others further down the path who have been there and gotten through it is inspiring, indeed.

  6. I am so with you on this one. I’ve been unemployed for 11.5 months and widowed. I never thought I would be living on unemployment. That was for those OTHER people.
    God is teaching me so much during this difficult journey. Trusting Him one DAY (or less) at a time. He has supplied all I need for today. He is with me TODAY, he is not with me in my future imaginings. I so identified with the rejection feelings. It’s hard to hold on to the understanding of my worth in Christ with all the you not good enough messages. I know that God is at work and he has a good plan for my life. Just wishing His timing was a little closer to mine ;). Keep writing. I look forward to hearing more about your journey.

    • Wow, Katie, “He is with me TODAY, he is not with me in my future imaginings.” Just love this thought. It will keep me from worry in the future…hopefully. 🙂

      Hugs to you in your situation. God knows what he’s doing in your life. And I’m with you on hurrying him up. It’s hard to be still clay on the Potter’s wheel sometimes…

      May God make you whole again after losing the one God made you one with.

  7. Great thoughts Dawn. Dying to self is so hard ….I heard someone say once that the problem with those living sacrifices is that they keep crawling off the altar…so true. I’ve seen myself slink off so many times and crawl in the pit…. I will pray that God will give you the opportunity He wants you to have in a place to maximize His glory! This place is a good start …you’ve done that today!

    • Susan, friendship with you has been one of the unexpected blessings of blogging. Thanks for ALL of your encouraging words to me over the last year.

  8. This one really hit home with me! I have been looking for a job since last April. Living in a big city, there just did not seem to be any opportunities for me. I moved to a smaller place, and still have not been successful. It can be incredibly depressing, but then I remember that God is in His heaven, and all is right with the world…

    • Lord, I pray you will fill Julie’s heart with comfort and peace as you work the details to your glory. May she trust and follow you wherever you lead, as you provide as only You know how. Give her stength and endurance as You see her through. Amen

  9. Thanks for sharing, Dawn! I am there right now too with a long period of unemployment and looking for jobs. I know the pain of rejection, and sometimes I feel just like the Israelites complaining in the desert – it feels like I will be stuck here forever. I can’t see the Promised Land or the good plan God has in store. Though I can definitely see how God has done a whole lot of work growing and shaping my heart and humbling me through this trial, and He has been renewing an openness and passion for His will and glory! I’m glad God never gives up on us and helps us through! I like Isaiah 43:18-19 that says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” I also decided to make Romans 15:13 my life verse for this year – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

  10. Katie, I think you’re on to something here. Seek Him and all the other things will be added unto you. Don’t give up hope, or get off track. Our God is faithful, even in the hard times.

  11. Dawn, I was in the same position last January and wondering if I would ever get a job. Lord, what would you have me do? I kept praying. In the midst of sending out a zillion applications and cover letters (those were the things I hated the most), the Lord led me to start a blog. I had no idea what a blog was or how to set one up. Having a background in journalism was a little help but the rest required a lot of research and help from my techy older son. Since that started last March, I have landed a “real” job–one that pays. But I must say that the Lord provided for our family in the most creative and unexpected ways during that time I was not working. That was exciting and so was the writing.

    I learned during that time, that He is faithful to provide and to even create within us new ideas that we would not have had on our own. So, the blog continues at “Open My Ears, Lord,” and I am happily working as a Special Education Teaching Assistant. I had not been in the education field for 10 years! He does amazing things!

    And, Dawn, I know He has something amazing for you as well. Something beyond anything you can think or imagine. Let me know when it comes through. I’d even be interested in the journey there.

    Praying for many blessings upon you,
    Janis

    • Janis, what a beautiful story. It’s reassuring to see God at work in so many lives around me, in my own life as well. He’s there, working out the details for his glory.

      We started blogging about the same time, and I think it’s neat how your writing coincided with your going back to work. Mine has too, in some ways. I haven’t fully connected those dots, yet. The Lord is still tying all that together for me.

      Thanks for sharing your story. It’s beautiful.
      Dawn

  12. Hi Dawn – I tried finding an email address or a different way to contact you but it looks like this is the best place! God most certainly has a plan for you and he will use all of your experiences here for His glory! I am not sure where you live but my husband and I work together for a financial services company that you may be interested in looking into. It is a business opportunity, not a 9-5 job, but it is built on helping people financially. If you would like any information, please feel free to send me an email! Thanks and God Bless!!