The Real Estate Agent Who Called Back

No, this is not an imaginary story, dream, or fantasy post. We actually had a real estate agent who called us back today! If you are wondering why this is a big deal, you obviously haven't dealt with real estate agents recently. We barely hear from our own agent in Pine City who has listed and - finally - sold our house. Trying to find someone in Florida to return a call - because they never answer their phones! - was difficult. I even tried contacting an old friend I grew up with who manages properties and even he never called back.

So how did we find a real estate agent who would call us? We went through Dave Ramsey's web site, clicked on his real estate Endorsed Local Provider (ELP) link, and found one in Florida near where we will be moving. In a few minutes we had a name (Steve DuToit) and contact info for our agent and in less than 24 hours we got a call from the agency with a very helpful agent who is assisting us in searching for a rental in the area. Dave comes through for us again! I know they are careful to endorse only great agents which makes me feel good about who we are working with.

It's pretty sad, in a sense, that something as simple as returning a phone call/email/etc. can make such a huge impact but so few do it. I can't tell you the number of churches I've contacted whom I've never heard from again. Several years ago this happened with a large well-known church in the Madison area. We had spent the entire day meeting on site with the search team and the senior pastor (who also gave us a tour of the city). We left with a great impression and were never contacted again - no email or anything to indicate that we had ever been there or been under consideration! Seriously, for churches that are supposed to be caring for people, the way they treat potential candidates is abysmal. I suppose it does give you a clue to the church leadership and culture, though.

In any event, we now have a realtor in the area we can work with and you can bet we'll be in touch in a few years when we're ready to buy another house. How hard would it have been for one of the other agents we tried to contact to reply? They could have had a faithful customer (and a cool write-up on our blog!)

Playing the Waiting Game

I haven't blogged in quite a while (hope someone's still out there reading!) Part of my lack of online presence is the absence of much interesting to blog about, and the other is general busyness around the holiday season, including my new part-time job.

Many have asked about our search for new employment. In the short term I have been continuing to substitute teach in Pine City and Hinckley. I also have a part-time job at Walmart in the electronics department evenings, weekends, and holidays. It makes for long days when I am doing both, but it at least helps us out a bit financially for now. Not a long-term solution or plan by any means, but it puts food on the table.

Ministry searching is especially slow this time of year. The state of the economy doesn't help any, either. From talking recently with other youth pastors who have been unexpectedly "employment-free" it seems that finding new ministry placement is averaging eight to 12 months or longer. We ended up having to start the job search in the exact worst possible time of year. The other thing that factors into this equation is that most churches have a long, extended search process that goes on for several months, so even if I found a church tomorrow that was a good fit for us the process would likely not be finalized until 3 or 4 months down the road at the earliest. So while I am trusting God to provide in His time, I'm not anticipating much happening before spring or early summer (I'm hoping I'm wrong, but we'll see.)

Nothing new on the house sale, either. We're into our third month on the market but yet to have even a showing. Our Realtor says nothing at all in our price range is moving in Pine City right now. I have mixed feelings on this as I don't want to have to move twice and since we don't have any place to go anyway right now it's nice to be able to stay here. Best outcome - it sells right after we have a job offer! We'll see and pray for the best.

Thanks for all the e-mails and encouragement from so many of you! Keep us in your prayer and we'll keep you updated!

Job Search

Big changes for the Spahr family. I found out this week that the leadership of the church I have been serving no longer feels that my gift-mix and ministry style are a fit for where they want the youth ministry program to go. As a result, I am currently in the job market and looking for other employment.

Thanks for keeping our family in your prayers. If you know of any job openings feel free to drop me a note.