Itās a cold day [at TPAC] as I take this final skyline glance.
Vacancies once held now seven years of vibrancies starring back at me. Crazy how a city can reflect what you already know ā the fact life is a highway built on and by dustā¦the cold yet beautiful reality that life is a vapor because it was spoken into by such.
Still, the question remains…
Ā How can one possibly capture a septennialās worth of growth? Or put into words a spiritual journey equivalent to a Sahara crossing with one camel and a military canteen?
Whatever the answer, I wonāt shy from letting words fly given this post is ultimately a testimony to Godās sovereignty. As such, I encourage you: Donāt read this as a summary of one manās odyssey, but a synthesis of Godās faithfulness to transform.
Prologue aside, letās dive inā¦
When I started with TDOT Finance in April 2012, life was a bull market. From Lyssah to LEGACYouth toĀ graduate school, everything seemed fresh and exciting. For the first time in years, I was enjoying all aspects of life ā a stark contrast to the brutal four years preceding.
Yet, by fall 2013, many of these facets began to settle. While most things ministry and marriage-wise were flourishing, the same couldnāt be said about work. After a āpromotionā from Budget to Payables, I struggled not only adjusting to the position but having to be in it at all. Unlike the two generations of Fryās before me, I couldnāt support my family through pastoral ministry alone. Consequently, I often clocked in already feeling like a failureā¦like I didnāt belong.
And so, I vilified the culture, my 7-3:30 reality a necessary evil disguised as a reincarnated Matrix.
On the surface, I was pressing on, but deep down, I was defeated, a prisoner of my own narrative. To be free was to be out, but I had no escape plan. Just a spray of mental splinters reminding me I had nothing to offer.
For years, I believed the lie my value couldnāt be realized at TDOT. While I was able to return to Budget by summer 2014, by then, the early stages of depression had settled in. Driven by lingering guilt from past seasons, it was clear the fight to tame my despair was not being helped at work. If anything, the lack of voice and professional development only compounded the problem. Perhaps had I not compartmentalized my āloved by Godā identity, these voids wouldnāt have hindered the way they did.
Either way, by January 2015, my disdain for the work culture had finally trickled into disdain for certain people. No longer could I emotionally separate the two. Like a house divided, my joy was one-sided with each day an elevator countdown and a prayer against hopelessness. Long gone were the days I could thrive; I just wanted to survive.
And yet, life was fantastic behind the scenes. For starters, all things family and LEGACYouth continued to bloom ā the best years coinciding with the worse years at TDOT. I was coming off a solid two year run at MTSU where I received my Master’s in Education: Instruction and Curriculum. And to cap it off, after hitting three years in youth ministry, I was had started working towards my licensure with Messenger Fellowship.
However, the major plot turn came during spring 2015 when I started to sense Godās call to create a written resource for vocationalsĀ¹. At first, I questioned if this word was from God given the timing made no sense. Not only did I feel disqualified, but emotionally unprepared to tackle such a task. Who was I to say ‘yes’ in light of where my heart was at?
But looking back, perhaps I shouldn’t have been so surprised considering…
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Even in our darkest hours, God is faithful to stir in ‘content’ despite our discontent.
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It’s often in the places we’re snake-bitten where God wants to deliver healing and entrust authority.
At any rate, after months of underground writing, His Girl FrydayĀ published during summer 2015 to a humble following of 25 followers with biweekly posts and a podcast launch a few years after. But for TDOT, the key takeaway was the big picture ā the fact God would use a special project to erode my heart of stone and transform it back into a heart of flesh. After all, itās hard to stay mad at the marketplace when marketplace people represent your target audience. I guess that’s why they say, āGod is without a sense of humorā.
Flash-forward to January 2019 and my heart is three years softer towards all things TDOT. Granted, there were some tough days; however, the inner maturation was now at a point I could daily choose joy, declare gratitude, and receive rest. Having learned a new rhythm of releasing, rarely did I carry anxiety into a new day. By Godās strength and power, I was being renewed regularly and refreshed in the mundane.
By early February, a new assignment had emerged, this time a Bible study open to all TDOT employees. As the Lord assured me, the inner man was ready to lead a charge that hadnāt been attempted in over two decades. A drive I would have laughed at four years prior, now a Spirit-led operation to plant a community of Godās presence. Using a mix of His Girl Fryday and Messenger Fellowship/Commission U content, I began to translate church-speak discipleship into digestible vocational dialogue. Though attendance rarely hit double-digits, the study would ignite a few more throughout the James K. Polk building. At last, the final chapter of my seven-year TDOT journey was complete.
By now, I bet youāre wondering…
And to that, Iād reply: The point is the story itself and the source it comes from. The way I see it, God permitted my TDOT landing so I could learn how to abide in a place I didnāt fit and love within a culture I didn’t understand. Along the way, I discovered how much more Jesus I needed…howĀ I couldnāt possibly love and lead without His daily presence manifesting as sustaining power. I also tasted the bitter dregs of indifference, resentment, and what itās like to project insecurity onto those mirroring your own struggle. If only I received correction without assuming gracelessness, no question, much grief during my time at TDOT could have been spared.
Still, when I look back on my TDOT tenure, what Iāll ultimately remember are the seven wonderful years I had to grow in my professionalism. Could have I been sent to more trainings, webinars, and conferences? Yes. Was it difficult being a travel specialist getting to send people all over the country without being able to join them? Absolutely.
Yet, at dayās end, all this is moot.
For many are the miles, but few are the meters to loving your neighbor. Much is the work, but much more are the people who work it.
Therefore, whether weāre CPAās or ASAās3, remember what matters is faith, hope, and love channeled through attitude, integrity, and legacy. The road may not always be easy, but as long as we stay the course, the freedom and ripening we crave will come.
As for now, I relish this moment to say, āthank youā and āgoodbyeā not only to my TDOT family, but every breakthrough, confrontation, and endeavor that has occurred the past seven years. What started as a single man looking for occupational and financial stability has ended with a family of five finding spiritual and vocational stability in the places that matter most.
One line ends, another begins. No question,Ā I’m on a higher precipice thanks to what I learned here.
‘Til next time, hereās to the next and the undeniable truth that the best is yet to comeā¦
Selah.
Footnotes
- Particularly those in ministry and marketplace simultaneously
- i.e. January 2015
- Admin support assistants
