I had a conversation today with a friend which which made the economic meltdown hit closer to home. He shared with me that 18 people were laid off in his office of 100, and it's likely that that he'll be out of job by the end of the year. The silver lining, at least as he sees it, is that he'll have a good amount of time to plan his job search.
I suppose it's easy to get desensitized to news about job losses as they roll in from the news. Here's just a quick sample of announcements in the past 60 days:
Corning, 3500 job cuts
Baker Hughes, 1500
Navistar, 700
Avery Dennison, 3600
Volvo Trucks, 650
Weyerhaeuser, 220
Target, 1500
Caterpillar, 20000
Pfizer, 20000
Sprint Nextel, 8000
Home Depot, 7000
Texas Instruments, 3400
ING, 7000
Deere, 700
Time Warner, 800
Microsoft, 5000
Rohm & Haas, 900
Harley-Davidsn, 1100
Circuit City, 30000
After a while, those numbers may seem like abstract figures on a spreadsheet. But each individual that makes up that number is a human being who either was or is going to receive a call or e-mail from their boss or human resources, and will be filled with a combination of anxiety, distress, and anger as they are being told that they are being let go.
That person may very well have a spouse or children who they'll have to go home to and break the difficult news, and perhaps amid some sadness think hard about how the family will work together to try to make it work. Maybe those braces will have to wait another year, a trip to see the grandparents will be cancelled, or a weekly family dinner out tradition will need to end. Others may be fearful of an inability to pay for healthcare or make their car or house payments.
Perhaps "drastic" measures may follow. Do both spouses need to search for work? Perhaps try to find odd jobs? Does the family consider moving in with relatives? Perhaps moving to another town and starting from scratch? Does a child in college quit to look for work?
The last two weeks at church, we've sung a new praise song which I think is particularly relevant for our times. It's "The Lord Is" from Sovereign Grace's Psalms CD and is inspired from Psalm 23:
The depths of Your grace who can measure
You fully supply all I need
You restore my weary soul again and again
And lead me in Your righteousness and peace
You’re with me through every dark valley
There’s nothing that I have to fear
You are there to comfort me again and again
Protecting me, assuring me You’re near
The Lord is
The Lord is my shepherd
The Lord is
The Lord is my shepherd
I shall not want
You gave Your own life for my ransom
So I could rejoice at Your side
You have shown Your faithfulness again and again
There’s nothing good that You will not provide
I will dwell in Your house
All the days of my life
I will dwell in Your house
All the days of my life
You watch over me
You take care of all my needs
You provide in every situation
So I sing...
It's a great song just to close your eyes and meditate upon, to truly own the lyrics in the depths of your soul - to be reminded that our job security, the good graces of our employers, our savings account, and our shrewd politicking is not where our hope and security resides. If nothing else, this economy has been fantastic of reminding us of this.
And that invitation to come and rest our weary souls is one which is overwhelming. It's an invitation that everyone and anyone who has been driven to their knees by the events of the past year, employed or unemployed, can embrace and accept. I know I will.
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