Job!!

Hello folks,

I wanted to let you all know I've been offered a job, which I'm excited to start for this coming Tuesday.  It's with a company called ATS Engineers here in Austin, Texas who do a lot of custom homes as well as commercial projects.  And along the home front, I have been hired to process energy certifications for homes.  For their office, it's a new position, so I'm excited to be working to pioneer a new process.  It's not in structural or civil engineering, which I was looking for primarily for the reason that I already have some experience in structural and civil design.  But in being offered this job, God reminded me of my growing interest and love for green building, and this definitely is a good stepping stone into green engineering and design.

But what's cool is how I got the job.  I interviewed with ATS from a Craigslist job posting and although I would have been eager to start because it involved being on site for much of my time, I wasn't offered the position.  I came away from the interview however, knowing it went well, and the company seemed really cool and the folks seemed really nice.  Not to mention it's in the beautiful Westlake area of Austin.  So, fast forward a couple of Tuesdays later and I get a call from one of my interviewers saying that although they couldn't offer me the job I applied for, they would like me to interview for another position that recently opened up because they thought I was a good candidate, well qualified, and they liked me in the interview and wanted to give me a job anyway.  The next Thursday in the morning I felt God telling me to expect a phone call saying that I got the job, and although I totally believed it, God challenged me to share that word He gave me.  So, in faith I told Shelley, and she totally believed it, because Shelley is so faithfully supportive. Then later that night, while proclaiming God's love to strangers on the street with Jason Chin, one of the ladies from our church prophesied that I would get a job and it would be a job where I was sought out.  How about that?  She had no idea she was speaking truth that had already happened.  The next day I was offered the job and now I start on Tuesday.  God is so good.

So again, I'll be certifying homes for energy performance with energy raters such as Energy Star,  and RESNET.  It's by no means an engineering job and by no means pays engineer salary, but I'm excited to start because it's my first career job!!  Also, as energy efficiency and green building are great interests of mine, what better way to get into this by starting with the basics of what it takes to certify with all these ratings and standards.

That being said, this marks my transition from my En Costa Rica blog, (since I'm no longer in Costa Rica), to my new blog, God's Love Falls, which will chronicle my continued life mission as God walks me through it.  I'll probably be adding some new types of posts as well.  Possibly some social commentary if God permits me to open my mouth publically, and I've always enjoyed answering questions like "I'm going to [fill in city/geographic location], what should I do/see there?" so I've thought about doing a post about all the great places to see local/indie music in and around Nashville, so keep a lookout for that as well.

Anyway, thank you all readers and supporters, you can continue to follow me at
http://godslovefalls.blogspot.com/

May God's mercy and love be poured out among you like the water that falls over a mountain.
Brad Montgomery

Intermission

Hello friends,

I want to apologize for not writing any time recently, but things keep going on, and I wanted to let you all know some happenings in the last month.  

When I came back from Costa Rica, I had started a job application process with an eMi representative whose business partner runs a civil engineering firm here in Austin.  His partner was looking to hire someone to produce documents for him, which would have been a good fit for me.  However, things changed a bit, and they ended up not needing someone on the civil engineering side.  However, they did pass my resume off to a local friend who runs a civil engineering firm and may be looking to hire.  I had an interview last Tuesday, and was supposed to hear back from that on Friday.  I haven't heard from them yet, so either they're super late and swamped or they have chosen another candidate.  Obviously, not getting the job isn't necessarily what I would have asked for, but God has done a wonderful job of showing me my worth and value in the engineering field by bringing me so much interest from companies just in the Austin area, and I am confident that it's only a matter of time before I get going on an engineering career here in Austin.  (or maybe an outdoor guide career, which I'm slightly tempted to start into.  Maybe working the floor at REI?  Just a thought.)

In the mean time, I've been working temporarily with Ridge Hill Investments, owned and operated by Steve Hickerson, who is a man full of grace and integrity, and a lover of Jesus.  His company builds and rents properties, and right now, I am working on-site at a current construction project he has going on some town homes.  I'm doing mainly clean up work, small laborious handiwork, and supply pickup with another co-worker, but I'm really enjoying being on a construction site.  I've always loved to build things and simply being on a job site is exciting for me.  I'll be looking to put in a few more hours here in the near future to earn a little more cash.  

The church search is going really well.  We've settled in on a little "Spirit filled" church called True Life Fellowship in Round Rock for Sunday mornings and have met some folks from the young adult ministry and their pastors.  It's really awesome.  The Friday after we went to their young adult group for the first time, I was talking to a friend from the prayer group at Southwestern, and he told me that when he looks for a Christian community, he looks for a group of people whose passion and commitment to knowing Jesus scares him.  I confidently told him that I was slightly scared of the folks the night before, and that's about when I realized True Life would be an excellent place.  They are very filled with life, and genuine, unconditional, brotherly love for one another, which Shelley, her roommate Bekah and I have been yearning for for a while.  

Things with Shelley have been growing through joy and beginning trials.  Her mom reminded us a few weeks ago to be thankful when trials come because of the opportunity they bring to grow deeper in mature love for each other, and I can certainly say that after a while of awesome blessings from God of understanding, patience, and compassion, God finally brought us some issues to work through.  Mostly dealing with my heart, but yet in those, He has shown wonderful grace, and strengthened our relationship.  Additionally, this past Thursday night at the wave, God revealed to me that I had been idolizing Shelley, and brought me to repentance.  It is very sobering to realize you've been idolizing your girlfriend, but repentance is ten times more freeing, and the moment I asked God's forgiveness and repented, I felt a huge weight lift and I was filled with joy, I could hear God speaking clearly and specifically to me, and I've been able to enjoy Shelley much more fully and honoring.  

Thank you all for your prayers, and I'll continue to keep you all in touch