{"chapter_no":"15","chapter_title":"A New Job Offer","book_id":"3","book_name":"Springville","subchapter_no":"0","page_no":"453","page_number":"1","verses_count":0,"total_pages":4,"page_content":"

 <\/p>

Chapter 15<\/p>

A New Job Offer<\/h1><\/p>

 <\/p>

Mark starts work at a new part-time job—Greatly missed at the plant, he is offered a high<\/i>-<\/i>paying
consultant job with full benefits.<\/i><\/p>

 <\/p>

 <\/p>

 <\/p>

Like Peter before him, Mark’s final day at the plant included a party held in his honor and
a few gifts given to him by his staff. It was an emotional day, causing Mark to wonder once
again if he was doing the right thing. Laying aside his job was a large sacrifice of money, career
opportunities, company benefits, and friends, and it was even a sacrifice of the social standing in
the community that both he and Kathleen had enjoyed for a number of years. Nevertheless, the
Chandlers had prepared themselves well for this moment. And they would soon find that the
sacrifices made, and the faith exhibited, would be well compensated. Great blessings were on the
horizon. The Lord would take care of them as they moved ahead in their new endeavor.<\/p>

 <\/p>

The following Monday was the first day of his new career. At 8:00 AM, Mark was
already showered, shaved, and ready to go. <\/p>

 <\/p>

He remembered the large amount of walking he had done with Brother Hancock in
Ogden; therefore, he decided it best to allocate time up front to get into better physical shape. He
planned only a light visiting schedule for the first three months (July, August, and September).
This was a time of transition, allowing him to ease into things slowly so his feet and legs could
get accustomed to walking long distances every day. He was entering an MTC-like program for
stake presidents; every day started with a regimen of good habits, including ten to fifteen minutes
of physical exercises. But instead of preparing for a normal mission-like service period of two
years, Mark’s preparation was for a service period in the stake possibly lasting until his death,
thirty or forty years in the future.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Even more important for Mark in these first few months was getting his financial affairs
in order. On July 9th, he started work at a local hardware store. Owned and operated by Ron
Ferguson, a good friend of his in the valley, the business was part of a nationwide group of
small, independently-owned hardware stores. His duties were to manage the inventory, help
customers find things in the aisles, and to fill in when frontline employees in the store were sick
or on vacation. <\/p>

 <\/p>

At first, it was a little embarrassing for him. The job he was doing was lower in stature
than what he was accustomed to, and many friends and members of the stake who came by to
shop saw him working there. Those who knew him waved from a distance, trying not to <\/p>

embarrass him; their thinking was that perhaps he had been laid off, fired, or somehow forced
out of his management job at the plant, so it was best not to put him on the spot. It was not long,
however, until word in the stake got around, and the awkwardness of the situation went away.
Indeed, many members of the stake, upon learning of the circumstances behind his job change,
started showing up in large numbers to the store, buying things whenever they had need, and
even sometimes when they didn’t. Additionally, a large home builder who lived in the stake,
when he found out what Mark had done, decided to switch over part of his regular materials
purchases to this smaller store. This made Ron unbelievably happy, given that this added
business alone immediately increased the overall monthly sales in the store by over fifty percent
and provided a windfall of new profit. Thus, the members of the stake were making an effort to
support their stake president in what he was trying to do. Their help made the new job more
comfortable for him and the transition to part-time work easier.<\/p>

 <\/p>

Starting the first day, Mark dove right in, learning all he could about the hardware
business. He analyzed the niche areas of the local Utah County market, looking for ways they
could distinguish themselves from, compete with better, or even find ways to do business with
the larger hardware stores in the valley. He used his experience as a strategic thinker to help
Ron’s business grow and prosper. It was just a matter of doing some of the same things that he
had done thirty years earlier when he started out as an entry-level employee at the manufacturing
plant—finding ways to make himself valuable and a strong asset to the business. In this, he was
guided again by our favorite example of Joseph of Egypt, going about his job faithfully in
whatever setting he found himself, with an eye single to the glory of the Lord. <\/p>

 <\/p>

The money situation was still an open question, but he and Kathleen watched their
expenses carefully and adjusted their lifestyle to match the new circumstances. The two of them
were motivated by something greater than just their own family’s financial support. They wanted
to see Mark’s new job situation succeed so that he could be free to supervise the stake every day,
remembering always the vision he’d seen that day up in the mountains with Kathleen. The
patriarchal blessing of the Springville East Stake was for its members to become a righteous and
highly favored people of the Lord, and to become an inspiration to the people of Springville and
to the Church at large. The part-time work he was doing in the hardware store, therefore, was a
means toward that end. He had become like the countless number of college students who work
part time in lesser jobs to support their higher goal of a college degree, except that Mark and
Kathleen had their eyes on a goal infinitely greater in scope and importance to the world––
building a prototype of Zion in their community. <\/p>

 <\/p>

About five weeks into Mark’s new job, Kathleen received a call at home from Jean
Wilson, Thomas Hawkins' secretary from the plant. The purpose of the call was to invite Mark to
lunch with his old bosses, Thomas and Robert, the time and date to be one of his choosing.
Greatly curious, Mark immediately returned the call a few hours later to set up the appointment.<\/p>

 <\/p>

The following day, the three men gathered at the front lobby of the plant and then drove
to a very exclusive restaurant in town for a friendly and cordial meeting. They sat down together
at a reserved table. <\/p>

 <\/p>

Thomas started the conversation.<\/p>

 <\/p>

“Mark, as you recall, we promoted Lance Rutledge from within the organization to
replace you as the production manager. You did a good job training him and he has performed
well in that role.<\/p>

 <\/p>

“However, I think I can speak for everyone at the plant in saying how much we miss
having you around. Lance is good, but you had a special ability as a manager––your experience,
your knowledge of the plant’s operations, your instincts to solve problems, your supervisory
skills, and your natural ability as a leader––that we've found difficult to replace. We valued you a
lot before, but we value you even more now after having tried to operate the plant for a while
without you. Frank and Ellen have also mentioned to me how much they missed seeing you there
in their recent visit and they were, in fact, the ones who insisted I set up this meeting with you
today. We understand that you want to focus a much larger portion of your time every day
working for your church and can only work part time; therefore, we have a proposition for you
along these lines: <\/p>

 <\/p>

\"One, we would like you to come back to work with us as a consultant.<\/p>

 <\/p>

\"Two, you can work as few or as many hours per week as you wish. <\/p>

 <\/p>

\"Three, for the hours you do work every week, we’ll pay you twice the hourly rate we
paid you before as a salaried employee.<\/p>

 <\/p>

\"Four, we’ll also give you full company benefits and the same profit-sharing plan you
had when you were a full-time employee.<\/p>

 <\/p>

\"Five, basically, we just want you to continue the good work you were doing before with
Lance and Robert, contributing as much time as you can.<\/p>

 <\/p>

“How does that sound? Frank has already given approval, pending your acceptance.”<\/p>

 <\/p>

“Wow,” said Mark, slightly dumbfounded. “That’s extremely generous!”<\/p>

 <\/p>

“One other thing,” added Robert, “the schedule and the hours you work are not really that
important to Thomas or me. Mainly, we just want to have you helping us manage the daily
operations here at the Provo plant. I’ve already talked about it with Lance, and he's very
supportive. He's mentioned several times what a big job it is trying to replace you and that
learning to fill your shoes could take him a lifetime, so having you back working part time with
us would be good for him as well. You can continue the mentoring process.”<\/p>

 <\/p>

“That’s a fantastic offer!” said Mark. \"I don’t know what to say. It's perfect for what
Kathleen and I need right now.<\/p>

 <\/p>

“But there's just one thing I will need to check on. I've already started working part time
at a local hardware store. Let me talk with my boss today. I’m sure, though, that he’ll be as
thrilled about this as I am. He’s that good of a friend.\" <\/p>

 <\/p>

“Excellent!” said Thomas. <\/p>

 <\/p>

“Fantastic!” said Robert.<\/p>

 <\/p>

“Okay then, how about we order now?” said Thomas. “I’m in very good appetite!” <\/p>

 <\/p>

“Me too!” said Mark. “I’m quite hungry myself. I think I’ll have the best steak on the
menu!”<\/p>

 <\/p>

As he spoke, Mark heard and felt a repeat of the word “steak” by the Spirit inside him. In
his heart, he responded back to the Spirit:<\/p>

 <\/p>

Oh yes! <\/i>T<\/i>he best stake<\/i> on the menu—the Springville East Stake—<\/i>that’<\/i>s what I want<\/i>!<\/i><\/p>

 <\/p>

In spite of the loud noises, the sound of so many people talking, the clang of dishes, the
guests coming and going, and the music in the background, Mark was able to hear this still, small
voice plainly, filling him with the love of God in this public setting. He could see that the Lord
was watching over him, teaching him things minute by minute, and mindful of his every need
and desire. He was being closely supervised by the Spirit—a supervisory technique he was
striving to master himself every day within the stake. Mark was fifty-seven years of age and a
lifelong, active member of the Church, but the Spirit had taught him greater things in the gospel
in the last three years than in all the prior years combined. <\/p>

 <\/p>

Rushing home, Mark shared the wonderful news with Kathleen and she was even more
excited than he. Their income would now be sufficient for their needs, and even more so. Armed
with the faith necessary to endure a limited income for the long term, she hadn’t needed to wait
long for a miracle.<\/p>

 <\/p>

As for the job at the hardware store, Ron was already getting used to having Mark
around, even just part time, so he was not anxious to have him already leaving the organization.
He, therefore, asked that Mark might stay on with him, working just a little—a few hours every
month—to help develop strategies for the business. The two of them worked out a suitable
compensation and profit sharing arrangement for this, providing Mark a second consulting
relationship that further diversified his and Kathleen's income strategy for the future and giving
the family a stronger financial footing than ever before. <\/p>

 <\/p>

Thus, the Lord had repaid them. They had lost nothing as a result of their sacrifice of job
and career. The family’s temporal needs had been taken care of. The work of the stake could
now begin.<\/p>"}