The global pandemic has affected millions in the U.S. causing significant job insecurity including income reduction, underemployment, layoffs, and furloughs. With U.S. unemployment hanging at
12.6 million or 7.9 percent, down from a
14.7 percent peak in April 2020, U.S. workers and businesses are still struggling to get back to an even keel. These are uncertain times and the economic uncertainty is felt in both global markets and in our backyards.
There is a mental health burden that comes with job insecurity that we need to be talking about. Likewise, the Bible has a lot to say about times of uncertainty and about faith.
I’m here to tell you, friends, that I have been through it. I have been unemployed four times in my life, each time under a different circumstance, and I’m currently working part-time. For reasons I may not fully understand on this side of heaven, unemployment, underemployment and job gaps have been a part of my life story.
Let me start by first sharing a few things that my job gaps have taught me.
God provides through community — when you pray in confidence in the knowledge that God provides for even the smallest sparrows and when you know how much more he values our lives (Matt. 6:25-27), there is a path to make it through this. You may have to get creative, but know there is a community around you ready and willing to help. You are not alone
God provides abundantly — God provides exceedingly, abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine (Eph. 3:20): We need only ask. I am a single woman. I don’t have a spouse. God is my Provider and my Redeemer, and I trust him to provide me with the opportunities and resources I need to take care of myself. In every case, they have been far more than I have asked for or imagined
God is God — he is not limited by man’s frame of thinking and it is simple and easy for him to align resources and help when you need it. He can come through for you when you’re at the end of your rope. He can bring food. He can bring cash. He can move mountains, and will, if you hang on and trust him, believe and do not doubt (James 1:6)
Which leads me to the most important thing!
We need community when we’re going through job insecurity, underemployment and unemployment, and we need fellowship with God even more. God’s supernatural provision is available to us, but to get to this space of miracle-provision, we have to cast our nets in faith and trust him to return a harvest.
One of my favorite stories is found in John 21:4-14 when Jesus reveals himself to seven of the disciples after his resurrection.
Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?”
They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”
So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish.
That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off.
When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.”
So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord.
Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish.
This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
God’s miracle-provision is waiting there just under the surface when we cast our nets in faith.
Two things here:
1. God leads us to our next steps i.e. he tells us where to cast the net and where to invest our time
2. Where God leads, there is a harvest of exceedingly, abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine
When we are unemployed or underemployed, we need not strive or overextend ourselves. God is God. He can deliver us right to the place where we catch so many fish that it should break the net — yet the net isn’t torn (John 21:11). We need only cast our nets in faith and trust, and ask God for the strength and determination to follow through.
God leads us to the harvest, and it is up to us to press hard on the right opportunities as he opens doors. This takes some effort and trust on our parts, but the harvest, friends, is oh so sweet.
Lastly, I have learned through my job gaps to use the time off to rest. Catch up with friends and family you haven’t seen in a long time. Expand your network but don’t over network. Enjoy hobbies you haven’t had time to cultivate. Get sunshine and fresh air. Take the break in stride and receive the rest God is giving you in this season.
The bottom line is that unemployment can be devastatingly hard on our mental health — or it can be the biggest blessing. It can be a season of renewal and reinvention, and if you’re willing, it will lead you to new challenges and opportunities that will stretch you and grow you in new and exciting ways.
Remember above all that God is with you in this hardship and that he will not let you slip through the cracks. He sees you and he knows what you need before any prayer is ever spoken on your lips (Psa. 139:4). Just as with the smallest sparrow, he will attend to your physical needs (Matt. 6:26).
I don’t wish to understate the challenges of unemployment. It is exhausting to crunch out cover letters and resumes while you’re waiting to find the right fit and the company or organization you would like to grow with. The activity can drain us, and the cash flow crisis can leave us worried about how we are going to pay for essential expenses like rent and groceries.
Unemployment income is simply insufficient to pay our bills and most of us live paycheck to paycheck. God knows this. He’s gone out ahead of us, and he is attending to all the details.
If you find yourself going through hard times right now, share your needs with your community and seek help. Pray and ask God how he is growing you in this season of job insecurity. God will not allow any trial without growth and if he’s trusting you with a job gap, you can bet he has even greater plans for you. Simply trust and follow his lead.
Dear God, Many of us have fallen on hard times during covid-19 and are facing unemployment and underemployment. Help us to use this season of change to imagine new possibilities and to receive the rest you are giving us. You are teaching us something new in every circumstance, Lord. Help us to find the silver lining and your miracle-provision in the present hardships.
Amen.
