Brushes with God are never easy to explain to people that want real miracles … sometimes it is just a leaning to do things God’s way, a suggestion, an unction or a connection with the written word of God.
My connection started with the New York Stock exchange closing my office in Plainview, New York due a sales person promising a profit on a time share venture.
This was a no no and after a brief investigation we were closed down … I was divorced with a 16 year old daughter and had $600 dollars and an old Ford van. We had been living at the expense of the company and when they stopped paying the bills we had to load up the van and take off.
We made it to Atlanta, Ga when I felt a heavenly presence enter the van while driving the freeway with downtown Atlanta on my right and all of a sudden I told my daughter, “I think Atlanta is going to be in my future and very important someday”
We travelled on till the money ran out in Houston, Texas … My daughter got a job at Mac Donalds and moved in with a teenaged fry cook. I stayed in the van on the streets of Houston and got a day job as a photographer and it was okay, but I missed the day to day life as a salesman.
I was down to one suit, one tie, one pair of shoes when I got the phone call that the company I had worked for in Long Island New York had started back up again and that I could get my old job back if I was willing to move to Atlanta.
Was I willing? and on top of that the vision while driving through Atlanta was now coming true. Wish it had a happy ending, but after a couple of months in Atlanta the company closed again, but this time I was really broke and both of the company officer’s were gone off to California unable to write a check.
I took off again with just enough gas to make it back to Houston and get my old job back as a photographer, but on the way back to Houston I spot a sign that said, “High Island” exit. I had always wanted to see it due to it’s being on the other side of Galveston. So I took the exit and drove through some beautiful country flat with rice fields all the way to the ferry at high island.
Here I was down, but not out and living like I was on vacation or something. So I decided for one more side trip up and down the main drag of Galveston for old times sakes of having been here in my high school years.
That’s when I came across a brand new just finished time share resort across from the beach near the west end of Galveston. I stopped and inquired within to find out that the main office was in Houston. I drove to my daughters place and got cleaned up and the next day I went to the offices of this brand new time share resort.
The man that interviewed me had those special blue eyes that you always think belong to an angel. He was the vice-president of the company and he asked me why they should he hire me, since my last job had been closed down by the New York Stock exchange?
I told him that I would make him the best salesman he had ever had, just please give me one more chance to prove it.
He did too and told me to report to work in Galveston the next day.
I borrowed $20 and moved to Galveston, Texas in my old van with one suit, one tie and one pair of shoes (all in good shape mind you). I run into one male sales manager and three sales ladies and one female secretary. The customers were few and the rotation of sales people netted you perhaps two lookee loou’s a day, but I hung in there.
I slept in my van and got to work early enough to wash my clothes and swimn in the pool and use the towels they provided for the guest. It was a very nice place like a really nice hotel, but of course all the rooms were owned by the guest for the week they stayed there.
Two days off a week to lay in the sun on the beach, but no sales on a comission only salary and down to five dollars after borrowing another $20 in Houston from a friend. I was alone on the beach at night in my van and after having spent $2.00 of my last five dollars for a hamburger. I started crying to the Lord, a Lord that I did not know, a Lord that I had not known since sunday school as a youth.
I confessed all of my mistakes to him not knowing that what I had done is confessed my sins and casted all my cares on Him and fell asleep peacefully with the knowledge that I had tried my best and that I would have to go in and announce my failure to the sales manager the next day.
I got up late that morning and by the time I drove in everyone was already at work. I walked in the back door and the sales manager saw me and said, “Oh there you are” “You’ve been here two weeks haven’t you”? and he turns and opens up a file cabinet and hands me a check for $250.
I was speechless for you see no one had told me it was $500 a month guranteewhen I went to work and this was the first check for the month to be paid every two weeks.
I’ll leave out the joy part of being able to fill up with gas, eat a real meal and go see my daughter in Houston too.
Two weeks later I broke all sales records selling eight time shares to one family for the busy season of July fourth which was the highest price they had. I made $3,000 after taxes and the rest of the story will have to wait … because this has taken too long already.
It was God and yet I did not know him … that would take three more years.