Friday Blog

I've Got Your Back

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Forklift in warehouse

A number of years ago while I was working at Home Depot I was being trained to manage outside deliveries. Each day we would check the order log to see what deliveries were scheduled for the next day, pull all the product, and organize it so when the delivery driver showed up the next day it could be loaded on the truck. One of the most demanding responsibilities was operating the forklift to load the trucks. Since most orders were small and the delivery drivers would make several stops on each run we would have to load the orders in a way that would align them with the delivery schedule ensuring that drivers had access to the correct products at each delivery stop. Sometimes we had to place pallets touching each other end-to-end in order for it all to fit on the length of the truck, and we ALWAYS had to fit them precisely side-to-side so the pallets wouldn't hang over the side of the truck. Jeff worked with me for several weeks teaching me how to load precisely and operate the forklift safely. Many mornings he would stand beside the truck observing my efforts and giving me pointers on how to load more efficiently. I remember well the morning I came into work and Jeff informed me that I was on my own that day. I was a little nervous but Jeff made a statement that really struck home - "I've got your back!" He said it mater-of-factly - "I've got you covered, you can do this, but I'm right around the corner if you need my help." He was sure I could handle it but just wanted me to know that if I got into a bind he was there to bail me out. Later, when I was training other members of the outside delivery team I would use those same words. "I've got your back!" as I encouraged them as they learned.

This past week has been a crazy, busy week. We drove 850 miles on Sunday coming back from Tennessee. Monday was a 14 hour work day with appointments stacked right next to each other and sometimes even overlapping. The Innovation Studio saw multiple projects that needed to be completed for an event this coming Sunday (160 engraved 11 oz glasses, several embroidered polo shirts, and ordering 4 different styles of sweatshirts - 65 shirts total - for the 5th grade science trip and 6th grade outdoor school). Then the chaos culminated today with a call from Enrollment after I had gone home for the day asking if I was available to give a tour of the Innovation Studio to some prospective students and help them engrave some memento that they could take home to help them remember Southwestern Adventist University. This week reminded me that life often doesn't work out just the way we had dreamed. There are often twists and turns that cause us to step back, regroup, and alter our best laid plans in order to keep moving forward.
 
As I face challenges that disrupt my agenda I am reminded of Isaiah's statement in Isaiah 26:3, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." God is telling us when we keep our minds steadfast on Him, He has our backs! When we run into trouble and things don't turn out the way we had imagined He has our backs! When we realize we can't do it on our own (which should be always) He has our backs! If I could do my job at Home Depot confidence because I knew Jeff had my back how much more confident should I be in accomplishing the tasks God has put before me because He has my back!

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