Irons in the Fire

Hey all. I just wanted to update you so you can be praying. I have some good prospects in front of me as far as other jobs and sources of income, as well as some long-term goals that I had put to the side but am finally picking up again.

I had a fateful run-in with an old college professor last week, and we started shooting emails back and forth and met again this week for lunch. She is so encouraging and positive, and really believes in me and my potential. She also knows lots of people in the non-profit world, and has already talked to someone about a great position for me in their organization. In addition to that, I have another non-profit that potentially wants me to do part-time work for them as well, so I may have some choices. I am committed to BLE first, and my one condition with any other employment is that I need the flexibility to still fulfill my obligations to the BLE ministry. The good thing is there are many things I can do remotely, but I don't want to flake out on BLE when I love their vision and mission, and still know God has things He wants me to do and learn here. But the reality is I need a more stable source of income right now.

The next thing I'm working on is I have finally, after years of putting it off, decided I'm going to take the steps to go back to graduate school. I am going to take the GRE on October 31! It is a four hour exam on a Saturday morning, but I am finally ready to take this giant leap forward in my life. I HATE standardized tests, and will almost certainly have a minor anxiety attack beforehand, but I have to do it. I really don't like any test that's not an essay test. No matter how much I study, I've never been a good test taker. I plan to read up with some prep books and take a few practice tests to get my mind back in school mode.

So now for the next question, what am I going to study? Glad you asked. I want to get .... a Master's in Public Administration! I have been researching it, and know it's the right fit for me. I'll study things like PR Campaigns for Non-Profits, Grant and Technical Writing, Non-Profit Management, Non-Profit Law, Foreign Relations and several history courses. It's a little more slanted for government and politics, but also works well for non-profits and advancing to a career as a Director of Development or Grants Officer. I'm excited!

I also have the opportunity to write a grant proposal for another local non-profit, which will give me a great experience and hopefully get my foot in the door to this as a freelance (and lucrative) profession.

So, I have several irons in the fire. Of course, none of these are going to happen overnight , but I am excited to see them cooking.