"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, and not for human masters." -Colossians 3:23
This verse came to my mind earlier in the week as I reflected on these past two years. On where God has lead me, and where He is taking me to.
It's been so long since I updated my blog, so first let me give you a "brief" (I use the term "brief" loosely, as I doubt I'll be able to keep myself from getting a little long-winded here)... a "brief" rundown on what's been going on these past two years.
In a nutshell, I've been working. On March 22nd 2017... I embarked on a new journey. I left behind the cold and bitter northeast and took off for California. I had nothing to lose, so I figured... why not? I drove cross country, a road trip, alone... arriving in southern California on April 9th. This was it. I was going to begin my new life here, in sunny Los Angeles. I'd made plans to enroll in LA Valley College, with the long term goal of breaking into the entertainment industry.
I had been out of trucking for two years at that point. I never imagined I'd ever get back into the industry. But yet, that's exactly what happened. I went to California to begin a new career, instead I returned to my old career, as I landed a new job with a national trucking company working out of (one of their many) terminals located in Fontana CA.
To make a long story short... I made my way back east later that summer, transferring to their terminal in Carlisle PA. Bounced back and forth between PA and Tulsa OK (actually spending the majority of 2018 in Oklahoma)... and now I am back on the east coast again.
As I mentioned, never... not once... not in a million years... did I ever imagine I'd get back into trucking. The lifestyle (it's a lifestyle, not just an ordinary job)... is brutal. It's lonely out on the road. The hours are long. It bounces back and forth between being extremely boring and extremely stressful, sometimes several times in a day. It's a dangerous job, and in many ways... an unhealthy lifestyle as well. According to studies that have been done, the average life expectancy of a truck driver in the United States... is 61 years. 61 years! So, basically, if I continue in this line of work, I'll live only another 20 years!
Still, it's been an adventure. There are places I've been, and things I've seen... that may never have been possible if I wasn't trucking. I've even reunited with a few old friends that I knew from my hometown in VA (now living in various other parts of the country)... including (this past October)... my best friend from middle school for the first time in 27 years!
Anyway, to get back to my main point. Trucking ain't easy (and that's putting it lightly), and I most likely will not be in this industry for very long, but while I am... I will think of this verse. I will work with all my heart. Because, in the end, I'm working for the Lord, not for men. I trust Him to guide me through, as He has in every way through this journey of the last two years.
I encourage you all, whoever may be reading, to do the same. Whatever you do. Work at it with all your heart. As if... you were working for the Lord Himself.
Blessings to you all,
Mike
