God Provides Work for the Hagens

Joe and Cynthia working on a flooring project. Photo courtesy of Cynthia Hagens.

By Chris Meehan

Joe and Cynthia Hagens (Servant Branch) recently endured a four-week dry spell in their home-remodeling business, J.J. Hagens, Inc., due to the pandemic. It was a double whammy—some customers were leery about spending money on renovations when their jobs weren't secure, and others who might have been willing to spend the money were leery of strangers working in their house, potentially bringing the coronavirus with them.

The pandemic affected the business in other ways as well. For instance, the lumberyard that Joe had purchased all his materials from for over 40 years closed permanently.  Fortunately, he was able to establish a connection with a new lumberyard in time to order some supplies for a few clients. Joe says that building a good working relationship with a lumberyard is a significant step in maintaining a successful construction and remodeling business. 

“We always pray daily for God to provide for our needs in general, but, after almost four weeks of no work and no income, one Wednesday Cynthia and I specifically prayed for jobs to work on. The very next day I got two calls for jobs that customers wanted us to start on right away! One was remodeling a kitchen, the other renovating a bathroom,” Joe says.

Then the kitchen remodelers got cold feet and put the job on hold. Both the husband and wife were concerned about the pandemic situation affecting their jobs in the airline industry. But a few days after postponing the project indefinitely,  they decided to go ahead with it.

Meanwhile, Joe and Cynthia were able to start on the bathroom renovation right away. When that was done, they were ready to move on to the kitchen project. “Since then, there’s been a steady stream of jobs coming our way,” says Joe. “Praise the Lord!”