Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Prayer Support Needed

I received a phone call from my boss Sunday night "welcoming" me back to Illinois. It soon led to some very bad news. With the current proposed state budget, the social services field will received cuts ranging from 50-75%. As it stands right now, I am expected to get a pink slip on July 1. Children's Home is being gracious and allowing us to work the whole month of July to try to do closings with our clients and get our paperwork completed. These cuts would equal 100,000-200,000 lost jobs in the social services field in the state of Illinois, which means jobs in my field will be slim pickings. God is in control and I am dealing with the news a lot better today than I was on Sunday night, but please continue to pray that the state officials will make wise decisions. Obviously, I want to keep my job, but more than that, if the budget goes into effect, the clients I serve will pretty much be without any support because there will be no one left to refer them to. In the long run, this could lead to more broken homes due to kids being removed because of abuse/neglect issues, more kids growing up in homes where one or both parents are sent to prison, and ultimately kids growing up to repeat the same patterns they grew up in. Doesn't that look lovely?! I have alternated between shock/denial/acceptance/optimism/ pessimism, etc. I barely slept Sunday night and have woken up with a knot in my stomach each morning. Telling the families we serve has been difficult because we don't have any firm answers and it seems ridiculous to tell them "I could be closing your case as of July 1 or it could be open for another 6 months. I don't really know." Much harder than having my facts straight and knowing an answer for sure. Anyway, now I'm rambling. Just pray for me and for the families I serve and for friends/coworkers. The estimate is that 50% of employees at work would lose their jobs.

4 comments:

Erika said...

we were praying at work last week in our staff devotions about this. I know the effects are in so many ways. Praying!

Ashley said...

Oh sweetie I am so sorry! That is so difficult. We know that God is in control of ALL things. I will pray for strength and guidance for you. Please let me know if I can do anything else at all!

stormhuse said...

We will be praying - for you, your coworkers, and the kids/families.

Mom said...

I pray for you everyday. Though no one wants to pay more in taxes I believe they don't think of the harm it is doing to so many people. God is watching over you, your coworkers and all the families you help.