Part 12 - Transitioning to the “real world”

So what was I going to do next?

After attending a Christian liberal arts university and then working in churches for nearly 25 years, I was resigning from the only career I’d ever had.

I searched and discovered a position that looked intriguing at a church in Oregon, and actually got an interview. But when they pressed me about my views on the Bible, it was apparent it was not going to be a good match. I was determined not to accept another church position that would make me continue feeling squeezed between what I believed and what the church doctrinal statement said.

I decided to start looking for administrative positions in non-profit organizations. There was one great opportunity with an international charity in Portland that I applied for and made it to the final two in their selection process, but then they hired the other person. After that, for a couple months I found no good opportunities. I discovered that the type of jobs I was looking at were too far away from our home, too low-paying, and they wouldn’t even give me an interview due to lack of relevant experience on my resume.

A call from a friend at a title and escrow company led to a 2-hour job each day delivering packets of home purchase documents to the county office for recording. It gave me something to do while I figured out what I was going to do next. On my rounds picking up the documents from title companies and from real estate offices, I ran into a realtor that I knew from our previous involvement at the Christian school in our town. He asked me what I was doing picking up the title docs and I explained my situation of looking for work.  He told me, “You ought to consider becoming a realtor.”

This was ridiculous to me when I heard it. I have always hated selling anything. School and sports team fundraisers that made me go door to door selling things always made me incredibly uncomfortable as a child. But he told me it wasn’t selling, it was serving people, which I was very qualified to do. He invited me to bring my wife Ann to a meeting with him where he would explain more about the work of a real estate agent and what it took to succeed. 

A few nights later we met and he explained his own transition into a real estate career 13 years earlier. He loved sharing with others how it had really benefited him and his family. He explained the challenge but the freedom of being in charge of your own schedule and what it meant to come alongside people in the midst of their real estate purchases and sales. 

After talking with him, I kept thinking about it for a few days, then Ann and I agreed it sounded like it could work. What did I have to lose? If it worked out I could keep doing ministry on the side, taking fill-in preaching roles in area churches, and growing my skills in a new field. So I took the leap, taking the online courses to get my license, and a few months later started as a rookie agent at the real estate company where I continue working today.

Word spread quickly that a pastor had just joined the company, and it was intriguing for me to experience a quick welcome from some, and suspicion from others. I sensed they wondered: would I try to insert religion into every conversation? Would I chastise them for using four letter words? Would I try to evangelize them?

I determined that I would simply keep my religious beliefs to myself and just learn everything I could from each person. I vowed to simply accept people and seek ways to demonstrate love and care for them no matter who they were. The result: for the first time in my adult life I found myself developing friendships with people who were NOT conservative Christians. Our conversations helped me see new perspectives and I learned to see that everyone has a story and life experiences that have guided them on their way to who they are. For the first time in my life I was learning what it meant to be a Christ-follower in a pluralistic group of people - not in a conservative Christian bubble. And for several of them, they expressed I was the first Christian friend they had ever made.

My faith started becoming more real, as I developed my real estate business in the “real world” establishing relationships with a much wider variety of people. In addition, I discovered a different sort of joy spending time in prayer and meditation as well as serving at our church and community. There was something fresh about doing these “religious” things as a volunteer rather than as a paid pastor. Something new was happening, and I was so grateful for the faithfulness of God.

Coming Soon: Part 13 - The New (and better!) Covenant