Being Resilient After A Job Loss

“Anyone who listens to the word
but does not do what it says
is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and,
after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.”
Jas. 1:23,24

As humans, we have tremendous resiliency. We forget the past pretty easily. Agreed, there are especially painful or traumatic experiences that stick in our memories longer. The death of a beloved spouse or child, a crippling injury or illness, or a broken relationship may haunt us for years, or the devastating loss of a job. But by and large, we have amazing capacity to forget and move beyond difficult experiences, to spring back after a set back.

Do we forget more than we should?

We forget the pain, the challenge, the loss. We move into the future, maybe a little more hesitantly, but still we move ahead.

The difficulty is, in our forgetting, we may also forget how God has worked within us. We may also forget God’s comfort, provision, peace, and more as we dealt with the challenge.

We may have distant memories, but we may lose the empowering spiritual experience we had during those difficult times. That means with each new pain, we must relearn the same lessons. Maybe trust does come quicker, but seldom immediately.

Dealing with grief or a difficult experience…

Is it possible there is a spiritual equivalent to Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’ dealing with grief model:  denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Would a spiritual equivalent be something like:  anger or fear, questioning God, isolation from others, bargaining with God, moving ahead in life, forgetting the experience.

Maybe as you look back in your vocational life, you can see God’s hand at work shaping you in the image of His Son, and having you engage with Him in some aspect of His adventure. That is His purpose after all—your maturity and your involvement. It’s not your vocational growth, except as that develops your skills for His use in other’s lives.

And what He has done in the past, whether you can catch a glimpse of it or not, He is also doing in your present job search situation. He’s maturing you and honing your skill for use in His adventure.

Dear Master Planner, I can’t always see how you’ve worked in the past, but help me trust for the present and the future.

If you would like to explore working with a Christian centered Career Coach, Contact me for a no-obligation 60-90 minute job search consultation with America’s Job Searching Coach, or text me at 425-220-0707  and we can discuss your situation, your résumé, what you would like to achieve, and structure your job search to fit your uniqueness.

I am also available to speak to groups.