Jen’s Gem: When you seek God, you will find Him.

About a week ago my daughter changed her major from Criminal Justice to Accounting. I know quite a switch, right? When we began the college process a few years ago, she was interested in Fashion Merchandising so you can see she’s done a complete 180 degree turn or maybe two!

I didn’t want to be an “I told you so” mother (and I wasn’t), but I could see from an early age that she had an entrepreneurial spirit in her. She and her friend made Rainbow Loom bracelets and sold them at school and at my tag sales. She has sold a b-zillion clothing items on Poshmark and at a local consignment store. Her team at college recently won a “shark tank” competition and she walked away with a few dollars in her pocket.

She and I had a “come to Jesus” meeting about college a few months back when she admitted that as much as she was trying to make the criminal justice major work, it just wasn’t. We went back to basics and looked at her strengths, talents, passions. She took a core values assessment with my dear friend James Madison. Yet it was one remark that set this new ball in motion:

“I miss my math classes.”

While these five words would never come out of my son’s mouth under any circumstance, it made perfect sense for my daughter. She’s always been a math whiz. She took a leap of faith and registered for two business classes this semester. The transformation has been remarkable.

Not only is she enjoying the classes, not only does she feel she’s actually learning something, but I see the spark back in her eyes. I see her light up when she talks about what she’s doing. She Facetimed me the other day during her entrepreneurship class and said, “You know – I could start a business.” She tossed out a few ideas, all viable, and I advised her to start writing them down.

I have been praying for my daughter to find “her lane” because I knew once she did – watch out! While I do think she would’ve made a great FBI agent or CSI professional, something didn’t fit. I’m grateful to God that she and I had that conversation that set her on a new path, the right path. However, I recall her parting words that day –

“What if I hate these classes? Then we will have wasted the money and time and I still won’t know what to do.”

I told her that I did not select my major until I was nearly a senior. I told her that if she was still clueless, then we’d have another pow wow and figure it out. The important thing was for her to take the leap of faith and try.  

A leap of faith. I’ve taken a few of these in my life as I’m sure you have as well. Starting a baby gift business in the midst of a recession years ago. Quitting a well-paying job to save my mental health. Starting my freelance writing business. Selling my house. Writing and publishing my book. The list goes on and on.

Some of these leaps paid off – others didn’t. That’s how leaps of faith work, right? You’ll never know if you don’t try. I didn’t know if I’d be successful in either of my entrepreneurial stints. While I won’t land on the cover of Inc. magazine, my efforts have resulted in my daughter possibly following suit, even if it’s simply a side hustle. 
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV)
Years ago, I took the most important leap of faith – the one that made the biggest difference. I took a leap of faith into my faith. I put my trust in God and His Son. I have diligently sought Him out every day and because of it, I’m truly blessed. Every week when I send out this blog post, I take a leap of faith not knowing if you will accept or reject the message.

My “change in major” in my “senior years” has led me down a path of transformation. It’s not always smooth, but it’s always worth it. The best part? I know that God will always take care of me. I know that He’ll never fail me. I know that when I place my trust in Him, He’ll always come through.

Do you need to make a change? Is it time to put your trust in God? Are you tired of trying to make things fit? It might be time to have your own “come to Jesus” meeting. It’s God’s will for you to be blessed, joyful, and prosperous.. What or who are you trusting to do this? Is it working?

If not, it might be time to change your major too.