Read this. Thanks Rachel!

After these past two years wandering in the wilderness of my life, I finally feel confident about a calling that has been placed in my heart. The odd part about this calling is it requires me to put it off for at least the next two years while I pursue a couple of high paying jobs to eliminate my debt.

I am currently being considered for 11 jobs with beginning salaries ranging from $38,000 on up to $75,000. While I feel extremely qualified for each job and have no doubt I will perform far above any employer’s expectations; none of these jobs are what I am called to do.

My desire is to be a full time financial counselor in a church setting. I want to be integrated with the pastoral staff at a church and provide counseling and lead classes. I want to help the poor in the church break free, help the middle class to get their spending under control and guide the church in the way they manage their money. With most church budgets the way they are, I don’t anticipate this being a paid position. That means to accomplish this I need to get debt free and have Amy accession onto active duty.

If I were to look just at the raw numbers of my situation, this may seem impossible to accomplish in the next few years; however, I am confident that God is taking our lives in this direction and I’m not going to get in His way!

While waiting in line earlier today I heard a voice call out, “Joel.” I turned and looked and saw David Strysko standing there. David is an Evangel alum and was also in the first firearms class I taught for the Criminal Justice Association.

David, who is now a Captain, graduated in 2004 and went active duty. He spent one tour in Iraq before coming over here. It goes to show the difference in active duty and reserves; I have been commissioned for a year and a half longer than him, yet I don’t even have my board for Captain until this November.

After about freezing ourselves out for three nights in a row, last night we turned our heater on in our B-Hut. I’m not sure what the temperatures are getting down to at night, but I would guess the lower 50s or upper 40s.

Last week when I was waiting on my flight, the location I was at didn’t have a passenger terminal like we have here in Bagram where you wait indoors with chairs and big screen televisions until it is time to board your aircraft. Instead they only had an area that had been covered with rocks (primitive paving) and no chairs, cots or overhead cover. Our show time was midnight, but our flight was delayed and didn’t take off until 5:30 in the morning.

I tried going to sleep on the rocks using my ruck sack as a pillow; however, the cold was just too much. I had a blanket in my ruck sack, but I didn’t want to pull it out because the delays were fifteen minutes at a time and I thought we would be loading up at any moment. I just laid back and tried to enjoy the stars, which was easier to do considering I was at a blackout FOB.

It is good to know that I will be heading home before it warms up again. That is great news considering the Army Reserve has kept me from my home for two years come October. It will be so awesome to finally have some ONE to keep me warm again!