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Q. Have you ever felt in over your head in a situation?

A. I sure have. Some responsibilities were suddenly shifted at work; a colleague was placed over me; I got angry and resigned. I thought I had another job in hand, working with my good friend Charles in another place. He'd already formally interviewed me twice, and I was to be hired after he returned from overseas within three months.

For those nerve-wracking three months we were depleting our family savings, but I was looking ahead with hope. Then Charles returned and told me that I had just one more small hoop to jump through: a ten-minute meeting with his boss, a mere formality. I entered the boss's office a happy man. Five minutes later, I was completely devastated. Charles's boss rejected me out of hand.

Stunned, I went home and broke down in tears. I saw visions of my family out on the streets in short order. It's the lowest, most scared, I've ever been.

What pulled you through?

I wish I could say it was my unwavering faith in God. In fact, during that whole time, God seemed mostly absent, at least painfully silent. Yet, it surely was God's gracious, undergirding arm supporting me through the encouraging words and actions of my friend Charles.

He stuck with me through it all, calling me, constantly passing along tips and leads about work I could get. I felt I had to be carried, a step at a time, by a brother who chose to take up the burden for me, ushering me through a dark tunnel of despair into the light of a brand new career.

Gary Wilde is now a book editor.

Prayer for the Week

Father God, help me to pass the solid encouragement I've received from You on to others who need it.

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