Earlier this week in my state, there was a hearing at the Capitol featuring several bankers. They told their stories. I want to share a little bit of it here because I think it provides fodder for thought about where God might be in our lives. Consider these two situations:
The owner of a bar and restaurant wanted to expand his business in 2005. The town had a major employer –- a company that employed 1,200 people who worked all three shifts. At the end of each shift, many of those employees would stop into the bar/restaurant; business was good. It seemed like a good time to expand. Based on 2005 cash flow and modest growth projections, the owner obtained a loan from a local bank to construct a new building.
The banker explained that since then, the major employer has reduced employment to 200 people. No one stops into the restaurant after their shift anymore. The owner’s cash flow is no longer sufficient to cover the loan payments on the new building. Needless to say, he is behind on the loan.
In a second example, the banker introduced us to a husband, who worked at the major employer, and a wife, who ran a daycare center in their home. The housing market was strong in 2005 when they decided to move into a bigger home. The bank qualified them for a loan based on his income and her daycare revenue. Today, the banker explained, the husband is without a job and uncertain about when or if he will be called back to work. The wife’s daycare business is off substantially because many of the children she used to care for had parents at the major employer. Many of them have been laid off, too, so they no longer have need for daycare services. The couple can no longer afford to make mortgage payments.
A lot of people are suffering in these examples: 1,000 people who were laid off; a restaurant owner who wanted to expand, a couple that wanted a nicer home, and a banker who made loans that went bad. Nobody wins in these situations. Yet, during this recession, these kinds of scenarios are playing out all across the country.
God is in Every Occupation; where was God when the restaurant owner decided to expand? Where was God when all those people got laid off from the major employer? Where was God when the couple decided to buy the bigger house? And where was God when the banker made these loans? It is very difficult to answer these questions for someone else, but I think if we find ourselves in a difficult situation we need to answer the question for ourselves. The answer might not be obvious, but there is an answer. God is always there; but He is not always easy to see. The better we know Him, the easier He will be to see. Sometimes, we begin to look for God only after things in our life have fallen apart. God's place in our life can usually be seen more clearly if we also look when things are going well.
The economy is very difficult to predict. Times change. There will be good time and bad times. We will do a lot better if we focus on what is constant rather than on what changes.
I admire here how you do not shy away from some very difficult questions: "Where was God when..." You are right, we are seeing these depressing situations play out every day - if not right around us, then we are reading about it in papers. Where was God? A very appropriate question. And you answer it head on. "God is always there, but not easy to see." God is not easy, or, he does not ensure that our lives will be easy all the time, I guess is a better way to say it.
It may be a long haul, and these people and others like them are going to feel the impact for years to come. We should all do our best to pray for and support them whenever and wherever possible. That's what God would want.
Posted by: Braldey J. Moore | October 10, 2009 at 06:40 AM