One Year – Part 2

A few months went by, and I found myself completely stressed out at my job and beyond exhausted. One night in particular, I was telling Matt about how stressed out I was. Being the fixer that he is, Matt jumped on his phone and started looking at the job market for me – while I was talking to him. At the time, I was really irritated that he was on his phone instead of listening to me. But looking back, I am so glad he was, because it changed everything for me. What Matt found when he was searching the job market for me was a listing for an Office Manager position at Legacy Church – literally posted three hours before my conversation with him. CRAZY. Even crazier – I read through the list of qualifications and I checked every box, which rarely happens unless I’m applying for something that I’m overqualified for (and for the first time in a long time, I’m actually not overqualified for this job!).

I researched Legacy Church and learned that they are a very missions-focused church. This definitely didn’t seem like a coincidence, so I knew that I had to apply. I applied the night after, which was a Thursday. Seek (a NZ job site) sent me an email to let me know that Legacy viewed my application just 20 minutes after submitting it (this is basically a miracle if you know how slow everything goes here in New Zealand LOL). That Saturday, I got an email from John, Pastor of Legacy, asking me to interview. The following Wednesday, I interviewed. And by Friday, I got the email from John telling me that he and his wife, Kiri (pronounced kitty), felt that I would be a great fit for the team. It happened so fast and effortlessly, and that’s how I knew it was God.

I worked out my last month at Hunting & Fishing, then had almost a week to myself with my family before I started at Legacy. My last day fell on a Monday (note to self: don’t ever choose Monday as a last day again) and Matt took holiday from Wednesday on. During that week, we had a nice stay-cation and got a lot of things done that we wouldn’t normally have time for. Come Monday, 3rd Aug, I started my new job at Legacy. My first day did NOT disappoint! Literally walked in the office, had a quick catch up with John, and hit the streets with him and two other people to go feed the hungry. We had 30 bags of food to deliver door-to-door in the projects of Palmerston North. I met so many people that day, and the looks on their faces when they realised we were bringing them food was absolutely priceless.

It’s now been a little over a week since I’ve started at Legacy. My first week was great – I spent a good amount of it getting organised, meeting people, and getting acclimated. Needless to say, I love my new job and feel that I’m right where I’m supposed to be. And the cherry on top – I’m working part-time. This is the part-time job at a church I’ve been dreaming about since day one.

I truly believe that this is why God brought us to New Zealand (or at least the start of it!) and I’m so excited to finally be able to pursue my calling to the mission field. Hunting & Fishing definitely had its role in preparing me for this position, and I made good friends there too. But that season has ended and this new one is just getting started.

Until next time,

The Cullums