Five months of change

As I read my devotion this morning I realized it's been five months since Mike lost his job.  It's been five months of change.  As a family, we have changed, our attitudes are different and we're softer with one other.  Our  financial status changed and thankfully the seasons have changed, but most importantly our hearts changed.  There were many dark and cold days which have turned into brighter days but with steep climbs ahead.  We did not buy the franchise.  God had other plans.  One Sunday in February Mike felt called to be baptized.  It was beautiful to see Mike Ausili baptize his friend, whom he had faithfully prayed for for years.  During that same service the pastor opened with a passage about Christ being our cornerstone.  In that moment, God placed it on my heart to name Mike's handyman/custom wood working/wood restoration company, "Cornerstone Custom Carpentry."  Truly, it was that clear.  I had waited for months for direction and I admit I was impatient.  In reality God was never silent but He did wait for His time and I've learned His timing is perfect.  After all, Mike felt called to be baptized on the Sunday when he would be making one of the biggest decisions of his life during the next week.  After that service I stayed quiet, not telling Mike about the revelation I had.  At the time Mike was getting ready to go spend a day with a franchise owner but I think we both knew in our hearts he would end up going out on his own.  Financially it was better for us to start our own business vs buying the franchise but as we've learned there is a lot more work involved in starting your own business from the ground up vs buying a "business in a box."  Mike returned from his day of working with the franchise owner and really enjoyed the work, enjoyed the owner and had nothing but positive things to say about the franchise.  But for us, it came down to what our hearts were calling us to do and together we made the decision that Mike would go out on his own.  I'll never forget the moment we made the decision.  It was Feb. 23, two days after Mike's baptism.  Mike looked at me and asked, "If I go out on my own, I have no clue what I even name myself and what kind of work will I do?"  I didn't hesitate in my response.  I told him his business would be named "Cornerstone Custom Carpentry," and his business would focus on handyman work, custom wood working/custom jobs and wood restoration repair (which is something we learned about from all the franchise research).  He loved it and so did I.  Soon afterwards Mike started to research business names in our county, to make sure the name hadn't been taken.  I asked him why he was wasting his time - God had named his business.  God wouldn't have given him a name someone else already had.  Just last week Mike got his business license so it's official.  He even has a tax ID number!  I often joke that we really have no clue what we're doing but we're learning as we go.  What I am certain of is God's had this all along and I have no doubt He will continue to  guide us on the difficult journey ahead.  Our prayer is that this business is glorifying to Him and that we remain faithful and patient to His plan for us.  I will tell you one thing, before this happened Mike had built walls around himself that only God could tear down.  Mike tells me he was on the Jesus "side of the fence" before this happened but that he was clinging on for dear life so that at any time he could jump over the fence and there was no way he was going to get off that fence and head into the "pasture" of godly goodness (ha).  But guess what, Mike's in the pasture.  God is good!