Balancing Ministry N' Work

Sometimes it seems like the sky is falling. It feels like different problems are lined up one after another waiting to hit you. They say trouble comes in 3, but there are times when it is 3 x 3 or even more. The Hudson house was hit with one of those strings of troubles. House issues, one after another. Car problems, stacking on top of each other. We have been wondering if it is ever going to stop. One day as we were wondering how we could afford it all, we remembered that we are not alone. We remembered that God’s Got This! We were getting kicked in the gut, but remembered that He’s Got This! I don’t know what in this world is kicking you in the gut right now, but I am here to tell you that, He’s Got This! Isaiah 41:10 “ Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.” You are not alone. Jesus is with you. He does not want you to be afraid. He will ...

“Now this is the confidence we have before Him: Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” – 1 John 5:14 We are very blessed. We have the ability to take our cares and concerns to the Creator of the universe. If we pray, Jesus is listening. “ 6  Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.   7  And the peace of God, which surpasses   every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7 Knowing that Jesus is there for us, should give us a tremendous amount of peace. He wants to hear from us. You find this simple message throughout Scripture. God loves you and He wants to hear from you. You will find verses that tell you to ‘Pray Constantly’ and others that tell you that if you are with just one other believer, that Jesus is with you. We also see that due to Daniel being a man of prayer that an angel appears to him. ...

Some days (most actually) I wish I could understand why things happen in our lives. I know beyond a doubt that God has a plan for each and everyone of us, it just does not always make sense while we are going through it. Those who have followed me for the last couple of years, know that God has been at work in my life. Most recently, He used the University of Michigan Hospital to save my life. Then a few months later He opened up a job in the small town of Spencer that seemed to be perfect for me. Shortly after our arrival in Spencer we joined a pastorless church and a few months later they called me to be their Pastor. God at work ALL THE WAY!!! Everything was going good. Work was good and it was great to be used by God at Ninth Street Baptist Church. Late in 2011 things at work began to change. The hours were getting longer and longer and the stress was ratcheting up. As the long days turned into long weeks and months, it began to have an impact on my health, my family, and my ti...

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that things were getting a little crazy around here, and it has only gotten more interesting. Juggling is quickly becoming a way of life around here. Work has been pretty crazy the last couple of weeks. Our plant has 6 major product lines and it seems we are having problems of one sort or another on 5 of them. Business has slowed on our main product line, casting suppliers throughout the country our running out of capacity and can't seem to deliver on time, and our new product lines are struggling to hit the projected growth rates. Any one of these issues would be just another day at the office, but all of them hitting at once can be mind numbing. My juggling skills have really been tested at work. I love the challenge and am looking forward to when we will get past these struggles and things settle down a bit, as well as my hours. Things at Ninth Street have been going great! We have a great group of believers who are coming along side of us a...

It has been a while since I have blogged about anything but my recovery from having my Acoustic Neuroma tumor removed. Today is a day to ramble a bit about different things. 2010 was an interesting year. Was called to be a Pastor of a great church in Michigan, found out I had a brain tumor, had the tumor removed, had to step down as Pastor, relocated for work, and much more. While 2010 was exciting I think 2011 will be more so. My new job is challenging and is everything I hoped it would be. I have team members to develop, sales increases to keep up with, and some unique opportunities. We have had some major housing issues. Our house in MI did not sell as planned so we had to walk away from a house here in Spencer. We are currently living in a house that is less than half of the size and not as nice as what we had in MI. We are very thankful for this little house. It has kept us warm and dry throughout the winter. Looking back to when we left MI, we are thankful that we were blessed to...

It has been roughly 2 weeks since my last post. Life has been busy! Needless to say we are now in between where we left and where we will end up. My last post was written in a hotel room and so is this one. Last time I was in a room all by myself missing my family and beginning a new job. This time I am not alone and in a very nice hotel suite. Alexis and I are sitting at the kitchen table that seats six at our different computers. The kids are trying to go to sleep on the sofa bed and air mattress and the dogs are lounging around here somewhere. As I look at this suite, I realize that it is bigger than our first apartment from almost 15 years ago. Heck it might be bigger than our second and third apartments. While back then it seemed so large, now we are crammed in here. Thankfully we have a full kitchen, a separate room for Alexis and I, and free access to the indoor water park every weekend! This was a great find for our temporary housing. Today Alexis met with the realtor and sent ...

For those who do not know, I have accepted a promotion and we will be moving to Spencer, IA! The position is the same as I have been doing in Jackson, MI but on a bigger scale. The sales for the factory in Spencer is 6 times more than in Jackson, and there are 4 times more people. My department will grow from 11 people to 18, plus two onsite suppliers that I will manage. It is a great opportunity for career growth. The last couple of weeks have been interesting! I have interviewed at 3 different factories and received 2 different offers. The positions offered and locations were both very different, eventhough they had the same title. The first offer came from Eden Prairie, MN which is Money Magazines #1 place to live in 2010. Spencer is a small town of 11K people surrounded by corn farms. Both positions were great opportunities, I believe that the Spencer position will be more challenging and offer some unique development opportunities. We are in the process of preparing our house for ...

The week of July 19th was an exciting week. It symbolized a major step in my recovery, I was going back to work! It was hard to get back in the habit of waking up early every morning, but I was glad to do it. Monday morning was exciting seeing everyone for the first time in roughly 6 weeks, since we popped in for a quick visit. For the most part things picked up rather quickly and returned to normal during the first day or two. I was very happy to see that my team was successful in staying on top of everything while I was gone. While some of the team felt stretched, they kept all of the department metrics moving in the right direction. I was very pleased with the team as I looked over the data. Thank You, Jackson SCM Team! Overall work was uneventful, by Wednesday I was realizing how little energy I had in the evening. I was beginning to believe the Drs about not being able to work and do ministry for 6 months to a year. I did not want to believe it, but on Thursday as I was walking do...

This week we passed the one month mark before my surgery. I am schedule to go under on May 26th, and that day is drawing closer every moment. As I have said before this is a good thing and a scary thing. First I am tired of waiting and would like to move on with my life. I am hoping to get this chapter behind me as soon as possible. I am not worried about the results of all I will be going through. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that my God will take care of everything. I believe whole heartedly that I will return to my life with very little adjustment. Jesus is in charge! So far He has continued to take care of me. Besides the hearing loss and ringing in my left ear, the only side effect I have is tiredness. Jesus has been good to me, and I have NO doubt that He will continue to be good to me. I continue to praise Him and thank Him for what He is doing. Decided to not go to St Louis next weekend for my graduation ceremony. Besides it being Mother's Day next weekend is the ONLY ...

Hey all, It has been a good week since I posted last. Nothing new on the medical front, my next appointment is not scheuled until May 18th. The waiting might drive me crazy, but I have nothing to complain about. God has been GREAT to me! I still have next to no side effects from my Acoustic Neuroma. Ringing in the ear, hearing loss, and a bit of fatigue is all the symptoms I have. Some of you are probably saying, that is more than enough. Many people with AN deal with facial paralysis and vertigo issues that I am not having. I am more than happy with my level of issues. Take my word for it, God has been GREAT to me! While this wait might make me loopy, it allows me the opportunity to make sure I leave work in the best possible shape. With so much going on everyday, it is hard to make sure everything is covered. At this point, my work is being split between two individuals. One is now supervising my hourly team, and the other will be the acting Supply Chain Manager. To help them we will...

Got a call today that I was not expecting. It was a recruiter out of Chicago calling me about a position in Northern California. I used to live in CA, so I would be open to the idea. The position he called me about was a step up from what I am doing now, where most of my direct reports would be supervisors or managers. It was a Divisional Supply Chain Manager position. Could be very interesting. At this time though, as exciting as the opportunity maybe, moving is not in the cards for me. I have just become pastor of New Life and am enjoying this new opportunity, and feel this is where God wants me to be. Not to mention that with my medical issues right now, this would not be the best time to pursue another job. While I am not going to pursue the job, I am still tickled that I got the call! Blessings, Robert

Hey all, it has been over a week since I posted anything new, so I thought it would be good to do so right now. This last Sunday was great! I felt God giving me a message for NLC. The message was titled God's Love - Creation and Provision. We examined how we were created in Love and how God provides for us out of love. Even unto the ultimate sacrifice given by Jesus in order to restore us to our rightful place, being in fellowship with Him. I was excited and probably the most dynamic I have been ever. Alexis (my bride), commented that I was 'on Fire'. It was a great Sunday morning service. Work has been extra busy, which does not surprise me. First part of the year always is, and with God moving in my life I am sure someone else is trying to trip me up. Thankfully I know that I am on the WINNING SIDE!!! Even with that work can be tiring at times and it is sometimes hard to come home and work on the weeks message. I keep praying and start working on it, and God has been rewa...

It is only Tuesday and it has been an interesting week. On Monday I was diagnosed with a moderate to severe hearing loss in my left ear. Dr. can not tell me the cause. It can be related to heretitary issues or may even have been work related. No real way of knowing. As most know hearing issues are not new to my family. Chris (11 yrs old) has the same level of hearing loss in both ears, and has had it since birth. Now I just need to get used to it, and will be getting fitted for a hearing aid sometime soon. I know God will use it for His glory and I am looking forward to seeing what He does. Today was the first day of our strategy planning session at work. It is nice working through our plans to improve our plant in 2010. I already see areas that my department will excel in, and some opportunities for us to take things to the next level. There is a lot of hard work in front of us, but the results will be worth it. As I sit in these meetings I see some basic ideas and processes that can ...

This week has been an interesting week. Two weeks ago I was contacted by New Life Chapel in response to them looking for a Bivo Pastor position. I have felt God moving in me like I have not felt in several years. It has really been exciting! That excitement has been tempered by the knowledge I have about the church and the week of work. Dealing with layoffs, performance issues, and the planning for a new year have been exhausting. Thankfully the homework demands for my last MBA course have been minimal. That will change in a couple of weeks, but I am thankful for the timing right now. The message I am preparing for this weekend is 'Imitation or Imitator' based on Ephesians 5:1-8. Verses 1 and 2 just jumped out at me and it has grown from there. I feel this is the message that God is giving me for New Life. Whether I preach there for one time of if this turns into something more I am praying that God uses me to bless the congregation. While there are concerns about the expectati...

In the last 12 months our factory has seen a lot of layoffs. A total of 5 rounds, including today's. I have lost 2 full time salary employees, 2 part time salary employees, and 4 hourly employees. Through this we have eliminated 4 positions in the office and 1 in the stockroom. I know the numbers do not add up, some positions were filled by others with more tenure. Sitting down and telling people with 20-30 years of experience that they were being let go was not fun. Some of these individuals have worked for the factory since they were 18. Sadly we cannot keep everyone when business has dropped 35%. Today I am THANKFUL that neither myself or anyone in my department was 'right sized'. This round of layoffs was announced in December, but no details were released. The factory did lose two people today who have worked there for many years. Both were not daily contributors to our success, but both are very good people and hard workers. Their job functions were not as critical as...