3/1/2009 12:00:00 AM
Yes, I thought the title would get your attention. I use it because while Sheea and I were in the middle of uncertainty God somehow used that very situation to completely change things for us!
Romans 8:28 "...all things work together for the good of those who love God, and are called according to his purpose..."
The Bad
As you know I have been up in the air for some time now regarding my job. To make matters worse, because the company is in Chapter 11, if I get laid off there will be no severance package. You also know that my training had to be suspended due to high debt and lack of funds to pay that debt down with.
The Good
Because of the work situation I send out an email requesting people let me know if there was any work to be had elsewhere. My brother-in-law let me know about a project his best friend was working on which needed a .NET consultant (its a programming thing) which was great because it let me do work after hours which is helping Sheea and I build a cushion should the "real job" prestidigitate and disappear.
Meanwhile, certain information fell into my lap which leads me to believe that at least until the end of March my job is secure, and possibly till June (my company announced yet another round of layoffs which would take effect in June). So, in any case, I consider this all very good news.
At the same time a couple people donated enough money to cover two of the longer flights! This was very encouraging, but I didn't want to start flight training again until I could be certain I could finish this phase of training (and get the private license).
Sheea began a college course through Moody Bible Institute's on-line program. She will be taking a minimum of 12 credit hours through them and may take more, but we will have to see what her experience is with the on-line classes. I (Tony) am excited she has this opportunity to get some Bible training before we go overseas.
Wait, it gets better.
One of these donors also is a business owner in the Dallas area who grew up in Ecuador as a missionary kid and found some of our pictures from Ecuador and through them our website! Now what are the odds of that?! I can tell you. None. God orchestrated all of it. He was telling me about his business (which scans paper documents and converts them to electronic documents) and how he owns a plane (a Cessna 172RG for those who like that kind of detail, pictured right).
It turns out that he needed help with a website for a new product launch and once again, what are the odds that the guy who he starts talking to is a capable Microsoft Architect? After meeting we agreed that he would pay part of the work normally, and that part would be used to cover the remainder of my private pilot license! The rest of the work to be done would be paid in "airplane dollars," meaning we will barter my time for time using in his plane!
I have since formed my own consulting company (a side business for now) to handle any similar (technology-related) work opportunities that come in.
So, any funds donated at this point are able to go into paying down the training debt we racked up so we can use the credit for paying for instructor and fuel costs while moving forward toward my instrument rating.
Not that any of those bad things are good, but God certainly worked them out for our good. If my job hadn't been at risk, I wouldn't have been pursuing additional work. Likewise, if I had been busy flying I wouldn't have had the time to pursue the work. Now we will essentially be able to pay half as much as it would cost me to rent a similar plane which will drastically reduce the overall cost of training!
Thank you *SO* much for your prayers! It is clear to us that many people are praying for our success and I have to say, in the middle of uncertain times it is extremely uplifting to know that.
Flight Training
Because of these developments, as of a couple days ago, I began flight training again! Below is a list of the remaining training (and updates) since the last time I wrote:
Night Flight Done.Night Cross-country Done.Solo - Cross-country Done.Check-airman - Passed.- Solo - Long (150mi) Cross-country - (bad weather has pushed this back)
- Solo Flight
- Instructor Evaluation - Ground evaluation completed. Waiting for good weather for the flight portion.
- Solo - FAA Practical Prep
- Final Check-airman
- FAA Practical Test
Tony Archer
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