"HE THOUGHT GOD HAD SPOKEN TO HIM, BUT NOW HE JUST DOES'T KNOW. Frank had prayed about a new opportunity and God had opened the door and Frank had moved his family from Indiana."

Yes, I believe that God does speak and open doors for us.  He wants to give us our hearts desires, according to His will and plan.  We also should remember that God seeks to build and make us better equipped by taking us through the various trials. "James 5:11 we give great honor to those who endure under suffering. Job is an example of a man who endured patiently. From his experience we see how the Lord's plan finally ended in good, for he is full of tenderness and mercy..."

We have to be careful here that we don't try to analyze God or put him in a box. 

Could it be that God design was to have Frank in Indiana and at the same time was giving him what he wanted but teaching him a lesson too.  I don't know, I am not in the business of analyze the Creator.  Only in retrospect can we ever fully comprehend God's plan for us.

 

"His boss said to him that he was not a good fit i.e. he wasn't a sales person. Well he is not, but he does know how to build relationships. And that's the name of the game."

I do not necessarily agree with the boss here.  How can he make a statement referring to "he wasn't a good sales person" and then turn around and say "he does know how to build relationships" that statement, in and of itself does not equate.

We all know that building relationships takes time and one month to me is not enough time to build solid relationships.

 

"Frank was going to sell counseling services to local schools; he had been a youth pastor for five years and had counseled many students."

It is obvious that he had a knack with the youth and had to communicate with them at there level, or the above statement, "he does know how to build relationships" wouldn't have any merit.

This verse might not be totally applicable because I don't know were Frank's heart was at but it does show that we do not know what tomorrow brings.

James 4:13 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." ¹⁴Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

 

Here is the pivotal question.  Did the change in jobs glorify God?  Does God want Frank to continue in the Youth Ministry?

*** I believe Frank should look for a church in the area that is seeking a Youth Pastor. ***

FROM HAL

What Frank discovered (and hopefully learned) quite abruptly is that gifts and talents suitable for one realm (spiritual) may not necessarily be adaptable in another (secular).  God created two kingdoms - the eternal and the temporary.  The Christian's purpose is not the same as the world's.  People are brought into the Eternal kingdom, not by one's spiritual giftedness, but by the Light (the Holy Spirit) working through the relationship one has with Christ.  Thus our "eternal" work is accomplished through the ordinary work we engage in.  That is why secular work is given to us; that through our chosen occupational ( it may, however, be a vocational work) life work, Christ may become known.

Ministry usually arises out of one's life experiences, not the other way around.  It is somewhat presumptuous to believe that what works in the church is going to work in the workplace.  That is not what the church is about.  Frank's ability to make relationships is in question here, however.  God has created in all of us various needs: emotional, physical, and spiritual.  The true fulfillment one has in life as a follower of Christ is in meeting those needs in others.  If he had learned anything at all as a youth pastor, he should have learned that.  If you are going to be a "good " salesperson in the world,  you thereby hone in on the needs of others.  The product or service you offer basically is designed, in most cases, to fulfill a need of some sort.  The job is to find it and make it accessible to the client.

I find Clark to be more at fault in the scenario that Frank.  We don't know if Clark was a Christian or not, but if the two of them were friends, "for a long time", we might conclude that he was (wouldn't Frank be talking to Clark about Christ during that time?)  Assuming for the moment that Clark was , in fact, a Christian, he should have gone into the job description in more detail with Frank before hiring him in as much as Frank's job deficiencies were revealed in 9 days.  It tells me several things: that Clark really didn't know Frank as well as he thought he did, that Clark doesn't know how to train people to do the job that needs to be done, that Clark should not have asked Frank to work for him knowing Frank was coming from Indiana and that it would involve some expense on Frank's part.

To answer the questions:

       1.  God does not provide work for us to, "put bread on the table".  He is to be glorified in the work that we do.  He is glorified when we do what we do in conjunction with His will, not ours.  He is better at what we do than we are.  If we are in a trusting relationship with Him, He puts the bread on the table.
 
        2.  Frank ought to step back from his vision, be in prayer, in counsel and consider exactly what it is he believes he should be doing.  He should ask himself what it is he has to offer the employer before accepting a position.

        3.  It appears Frank would have a good fit as a high school counselor.  (Why wasn't this the opportunity that was offered to him in the first place?)

        4.  Forget any wrongful termination litigation.  Frank's pride may have a dent in it but having a few dollars put in his pocket will certainly not glorify God with the broken relationship with Clark that will result from it.  The issue here should not turn on a legal question, but a relational one.  Court orders are rarely made for reconciliation, but for restitution.  If I were the judge, I would have told Frank he was in court for the wrong reason.

        5.    Jer. 10:23-24, Jer.38:15, II Chron. 25:16b, Prov. 23:7, Rom. 2:6, John 12:21b (How does Frank see Jesus?), II Tim. 1:12, Heb 5:8.

YIC, Hal