The adventure begins

A little over two weeks from today I leave for Saudi Arabia. I am going to teach 1st grade at a Canadian International school in Jeddah. The school is made up of mostly American and Canadian teachers, and mostly Saudi students. It is a private school, so students must pay tuition to attend. I will be teaching all subjects in English, but have been trying to learn Arabic using Rosetta Stone software. There are five 1st grade teachers, and we each have about 24 students. I am nervous about the number of students in my classroom, since I've never had more than 20. First grade is also a new experience, since I am used to teaching 3rd graders. Despite those concerns, I am so excited to be teaching 1st grade and can't wait to get to Jeddah to start learning the curriculum and planning for my class. The students don't start school until October 3rd, due to Ramadan, so I will have a few weeks to get acclimated before starting to teach.

I will be living on a compound made up of 40 different nationalities. Never having lived on a compound before, I am curious as to what that will be like. I get my own furnished apartment, satellite TV, internet, transportation provided for, etc. Essentially, all my financial needs are paid for except for food.

I am truly blessed to be in this financial situation with the economy the way it is. In fact, that is one reason I decided to teach overseas. I had a difficult year at my previous school, for a number of reasons, and began looking into public schools or other private schools in Palm Beach County. Unfortunately, due to the economy, there was a hiring freeze in the public schools, and many private schools were letting teachers go. Seeing that there was a slim chance I would be hired by a school locally, I began to research international schools. I found a website called Educators Overseas that puts teachers in touch with international schools that have job openings. I had always wanted to teach overseas, so I uploaded my resume and other required documents, and indicated my interest in teaching in the Middle East.

If you asked me last year where I would want to teach overseas, I would probably have said Southeast Asia. I had been to Thailand, and loved the people, the climate, and the food. However, I told my Father that I was willing to teach pretty much anywhere, as long as it was a warm climate! I am a Floridian at heart and can't stand the cold, so I knew if He had long term plans for me to be overseas, it would have to be warm. Well, I began to ponder which region of the world I might like to teach in. I've always wanted to travel to Europe, but thought it would be too cold to actually live there. I'd never really felt a draw to South America or Africa, no offense to those parts of the world, so on my application to Educators Overseas I indicated my interest in teaching in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, or the Caribbean.

My Father was working on my heart, slowly narrowing my focus to one people group - the Muslims of the Middle East. My heart ached for them when I read on MTW's website that most of the MIddle East has never even heard the Good News. As I researched a job in Abu Dhabi (in the United Arab Emirates), I was excited to learn of the diversity of that city and the impact the Good News could have on the world as people from various nationalities went back to their countries with that Message. I applied for a job in Abu Dhabi and waited...and waited...and waited to hear about an interview.

After about a month of not hearing from the schools in Abu Dhabi, I began to give up hope and started looking for any education related job that might be available in Palm Beach County - even if it had to be part-time. Imagine my shock when I received an email from Educators Overseas about a job, not in Abu Dhabi as I originally applied for, but in Saudi Arabia. When I first read the email, my breath quickened and my heart began to race. I knew this was where He wanted me to go, and I was scared! I had heard about Saudi Arabia...about the way they treat women...it was not as free and open as Abu Dhabi. After I read over the email several times, my heart slowed down and I began to pray. I prayed for wisdom, discernment, and trust.

It is funny how His timing works. The same day of my interview via skype with the school in Saudi Arabia, I received information about an interview with the school in Abu Dhabi that I had originally applied for. My Father was not making this easy. I now had two options - a job at a private school with awesome benefits in a country where any religion other than Islam is illegal, or a job with very little benefits in the public schools in a city with religious freedom. Desiring a good teaching situation, and wanting to be stretched, I chose the first job after much prayer - and counsel from almost the entire WPC family, it seemed like!

My biggest fear going into this was not knowing if I would have other believers to fellowship with. So, this became my daily prayer. My Father assuaged that fear and answered my request sooner that I even expected. During our family vacation in the mountains of North Carolina, I just happened to check my email after almost a week of not checking it (which is a very long time for me!). In my inbox was an email from another woman considering a job at the same school I had been hired at. In her introductory email, she revealed that she was a single believing woman from Florida! Not only did He answer my prayer for another believer (yes, she did end up signing a contract), but he showed me His grace with the fact that she was single and a fellow Floridian. Turns out, she is going to be teaching 2nd grade at the same school and we have been keeping in touch through email and phone calls for the past month-and-a-half.

With His blessings and promises in mind, I venture forth into this new adventure - resting on His grace, sovereignty, and omnipresence (Yes, He is even in Saudi Arabia!). "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."