Our newest version of the empty nest

In my last post, I mentioned the joy of being able to enjoy an occasional lunch with my son this summer. I realized it's about time I update the blog on this new chapter of his life. I think he appreciates me letting him live life quietly and out of any spotlight, but a little context on where he's settled may be helpful for my future posts. 

David graduated from Dallas Baptist University last May (2024) with a degree in Business Finance. He and his buddy had planned to look for jobs in the DFW area and get an apartment together right out of college, but God had other plans for them when neither one landed a job in time. So David made the hard decision to move to Indiana with us temporarily while he continued to look for a job in his field in the DFW area--at least before the grace period ended so he could settle somewhere before he had to start paying on his student loans. 

But he soon found out that a degree without experience is a tough spot to be in. He can't get hired for the jobs he's qualified for without the experience behind him, and he can't get hired for the entry level positions because his degree over-qualifies him. After hundreds of applications and several solid interviews that left him picked over in the end, he began to feel pretty defeated and discouraged. Thankfully he had a place to live and could work with his dad and uncle to make at least enough money to cover his student loans. A bit humbling, though, when those temporary months nearly turned into a year of life. He never stopped seeking God's guidance, and the wait really opened his heart to go wherever God decided to open a door. 

David's been on many mission trips with his youth group at Lakepointe Church in Texas, so when I looked into our church trip to the Dominican, he really wanted to go. I think he would have loved going and serving with me, but he just couldn't make the commitment with his life and future so up in the air. So in the end, Mike ended up going while David stayed behind to work with his uncle Matt, and Mark (Matt's father-in-law), and stay home with the cats. 

So while we were in the Dominican, David worked all week and went out to eat with Mark and his buddies after work one of the evenings. He opened up a little bit about his current situation and job search, and then they got to talking trucks for the rest of the evening. It "just so happened" that Mark's buddy owns a company that makes saws to cut steel, and he was looking to hire a new service tech guy. So he set up an interview for David two days later. 

Well, the interview didn't quite go as planned, and he said he totally messed up on the most simple of Math questions--stuff he said he should have been able to answer quickly and easily. So when we came home that weekend from the Dominican and he told us all about his week, he said, "Well, God's gonna really have to do His thing if this is where He wants me."

Monday morning they offered him the job! It pays him nicely, has good benefits, and he travels all over the United States throughout the week, guaranteed to be home every weekend. The traveling could be a drawback at any other time in his life, but currently, it's a great fit. He said that he would not have taken it if he couldn't be guaranteed to be home on the weekends because he wouldn't be able to get connected with church on a consistent basis. He can also request to stay local on certain weeks when he needs to take care of an appointment or anything like that. It comes with a lot of really great perks, like getting to eat out at his favorite restaurants when traveling, staying at nice hotels and earning points that he can use for personal use, and he even got his own truck for the business (a truck that he said he wanted to buy with his own money if he had landed a job in the finance field). It gives him his independence, and there's no need to rent an apartment when he's only home on the weekends. And it gives Mike and me a little bit more of that empty nest. It means my little house is going to stay full for longer than expected, but it's a really sweet spot to be in with my son. He's a nice companion to have around and a big help to Mike with any projects around the house, out on the trails, or with their variety of vehicles in the driveway. 

So he started working in late March and has now been there for about two months. He's getting settled into  a good routine, has been the tag-along guy in training up till now, and he looks forward to getting to go out on jobs on his own soon. That way he'll be free to do any kind of sight-seeing he wants to or stop to see any family and friends in nearby areas. They have customers in the Dallas area, so he's hoping he gets to take those jobs once he's fully trained. 

I'm so proud of that kid and the way that he leaned in to God's direction for his life. It's not the job he went to college for, but he knew without a doubt that it was God who dropped it in his life for this season of his life. We talked about how we can't put God in a box because we have no idea what His plans could be for us.