For serious...When my Parents picked us up at the airport, they took us back to their house to spend the night so that we could rest a little before we drove the three hours back to our house. While we were there, my Dad told Ari that he had a standing offer for a job with the Mesa County Sheriff's Dept. that had been extended to him via a good friend of our family's who is a Sergeant with them. That guy's name is Wayne, and he is also my Parent's home group leader. He and his wife prayed a lot for us while we were still living in WA that the Lord would bring us down and get Ari into police academy, and into a job. They were also very helpful to Ari whenever he had questions and served as a reference on Ari's resume'. So, needless to say, these are really good people. At any rate, we would be living in the same town as my Parent's again, which means that we would be no more than five minutes from their home no matter where we end up living! Plus, (and this is a HUGE plus) we would be close to our old church again! Yea! : ) The other benefit is that Ari and I both would have friends again and I could work if I wanted to, or whatever... ; ) So, as you can see, this is a lot to pray about.
As for where we are now in Telluride, we don't have a church, we don't have any friends, we don't have any sense of community or belonging...basically, the only thing keeping us here is Ari's job, and the fact that this is where God brought us a year and a half ago. When we came back from our vacation we came home to some unpleasant things and we both kinda got the feeling that it may be time to "shake the dust off our feet" on our way out. Ari's job is very stressful here. (we know that it will be that way anywhere, it's just the nature of the job.) He is working 4 out of 4 days with the most difficult and frustrating superviser, and he has pretty much done all of the growing that he can do at this department, as far as continuing ed, work experience and that sort of thing ...The negatives are that we would go down in pay by a few thou a year, and it never feels good to leave a job, no matter how hard it is.
The only reason that we haven't taken off for Grand Junction yesterday is that we are waiting on the Lord for clear confirmation and direction. The one thing that we have here, the one thing that has kept us here over the years has been that we know that we know that we know that God brought us here for Ari to get his foot in the door with police work. And, we both refuse to leave with out having that...we refuse to live with out being able to come back to that...that we know we were called here...you know? Neither one of us are willing to live without that certanty and security. There have been many days that I have fallen back on that, and I am not foolish enough to think that there won't be times like that in the future, no matter where we are.
So pray, please pray. I know that ultimately we both want to move back to the Camas area, and to complicate matters a bit, that police department is agressively highering too...We have some tuff decisions ahead of us. The other thing that we know is that God brought us first and foremost to Grand Junction/Fruita to do some work in our family, and I don't know that I feel that is complete yet. I just don't feel a release from whatever God is doing with the Upson clan. Pray, please pray! I am getting a headache just writing about it. : ) For now, only God knows, and He's not telling! At least not yet anyway! : )
Much love to you all
