Keep Your Word, Change Your Life

Your Word is Law

The consequences of keeping your word. Your WORD is LAW!!!!!!!!!

Summer of 2004. Florida was hit by 3 hurricanes in a row. As we watched the events unfold and herd about all the help needed; I said to Marilyn that if I wasn't employed I would go down to Florida and help with the clean up and support those who needed help. A not so bold thing to say since I knew in reality I really couldn't go because of my job.

Six months later, January 2005, I went independent. I continued to do the same job, sell Retractable awnings for Sunair, but as an independent contractor not an employee. There are great tax and freedom benefits to the decision. The 2005 awning season arrived; I had a fabulous year.

August 29, 2005. Katrina crushes the Gulf coast. In the following days I remember sitting and watching the aftermath from the same nice warm couch I sat just a year before; the same vantage point as a year earlier watching Florida. I also remember yelling at the TV, the people in New Orleans to get off their ___ and walk out of the crap and stop waiting for "The Government" to do something. I also recall not hearing much wining and crying from the people in Mississippi which took the total brunt of Katrina storm full force.

My words from a year ago echoed in my head. "If I wasn't employed I would..................help". In reality I wasn't excited by the prospects of going into a complete unknown situation in the midst of storm destruction. But "I said I would help", would I follow through? No one except my wife knew what I had promised. Bottom line is I would have to live with whatever decision I made.

Consequences of keeping your word to "Yourself".

I prepared for about two months for the trip. I raised $6000 (friends and family) to bless those who had a need when I got to Biloxi. Raising money is a pain in the butt, I really don't know how politicians and missionaries do it year after year.

For two weeks over the Thanksgiving holidays I worked in and around the Biloxi area with many volunteers. As we traveled from place to place I was awe struck at the amount of people who had come to help. Church vans and buses, hundreds of trucks with independent contractor signs from all over the country were apparent everywhere. I had come to Biloxi to help people, and I did; and they were extremely thankful.

Consequences.

The people of Biloxi, Mississippi changed my life forever. I went to Biloxi to be a hero and I was humbled by what I witnessed. I went to help and I was helped. In 13 days I heard not one complaint. I listened to many horrific stories and witnessed people living in cars, pick-up trucks or wherever. This is two and a half months after the storm. I remember saying to parents that their children will be stronger than most; when coming on hard times in the future their memory of what they had survived in the Katrina episode would make future adversity seem minor in comparison.

Driving home I remember thinking about 9/11 and Katrina; the similarities, in a matter of hours peoples lives were changed forever by circumstances outside their control. I thought about how
Marilyn and I had been helping people financially for years, but we have always wanted to do more. While coming home I thought why not change our lives "On Purpose", by just making a Decision to do so; not waiting for some outside circumstance like 9/11 or Katrina.

(Continued Tomorrow)