Testing, Testing, 1-2-3

Surreal moment #2: I was asked to come in for an interview, for the job(s) I applied for the other day! I was still taking in the whole moment of me actually stepping forward to submit my resume, and then this call that sent me for a loop. Thankfully I did not have much time to consider the whole thing--I got the message Monday at 5:30 and they wanted to see me Tuesday at 2:15. So I called back and confirmed the appointment, before I could talk myself out of it.
"The appointment will take about 1 hr., as we will be testing your skills, etc. and then do the interview."
Testing? Alright, reality will hit me a little sooner than I expected, but it's probably better this way, to find out how way in over my head I am before I get too wrapped up in myself. But I realized that this was an awesome beginning to finding out what I really want to do and what I am really capable of.
I walked into the office for my interview, and met someone I sort of knew also waiting their turn and chatted a bit, easing the tension for both of us, I think. While I was waiting I actually became quite relaxed and discovered that I might actually enjoy this experience. And sure enough, I did! I performed "really well" during the testing (aptitude, keyboarding, data-entry, etc.) and even when I walked into the interview room with 7 or 8 board members (I was only expecting 1 interviewer!) waiting for me, I remained calm and collected and I believe I presented myself well. When all was said and done, I felt really good about the whole thing, and honestly felt that if this was the end of the road, what I'd experienced thus far would be enough. It's a huge deal, having an interview for a dream job, after 10 years of 'missing in action'!
When it started to occur to me that I might actually get the job, I started sweating. Yes, it would be a dream job, but am I ready for it? The timing didn't feel right to me, but I had decided a few months ago that whenever a job like this got posted I would apply, thinking that it might take a few tries to get their attention. So I got their attention a little sooner than I expected to! I've prayed about this thing for quite some time now (and rallied some prayer troops in the last frantic days!), and really had to trust that God would look out for my best interest, here. I'm really not very good at making decisions, even little ones, and so I'm often begging Him to step in and 'make it happen' - His way. Some may think that is an admirable characteristic for a child of God, but I think if it becomes extreme, where one becomes too fearful to step out in faith, that is a character weakness. Yeah, for me, it more often shows up as the latter.
But through this whole experience, as positive as it was, God did speak to my heart, that now was not exactly the right time and place for this to happen. And this was confirmed today when I received the call that another applicant was chosen over me. And I was at peace with that. I even had the presence of mind to ask if there was anything I should/could do the next time I would apply for such a job that would increase my chances of getting hired. And next time, I will be a little more ready...