I was at work making phone calls one day when a customer pulled on to the lot. It never
fails, if I want a customer all I have to do is try to go to lunch or get someone on the
telephone. On a good day I can engage fifty or sixty answering machines. Call after call,
machine after machine. Let someone answer the phone who wants to talk and almost
certainly a customer will drive onto the lot at the same time needing help. That is what
happened on this day creating the story I am about to share with you.
It was the beginning of a new month and I was already tense because I was broke and
the previous month was not nearly as productive as I needed it to be. Well, since I am
telling you all my business, I will tell you that the previous four maybe even five months
were not as productive as I needed them to be. I was just about at the end of my rope.
Usually I can fake it pretty well but I was at a point where the weight was just getting
too heavy to carry. I had reached a point of praying regularly but they did not seem to
be heard. Each day I asked God to lead me to a more consistent industry, or at least
show me how to generate a more consistent income. You see in car sales, it is feast or
famine and one never knows which months will be which, which is why we salespeople
have to budget. I know this today, I just have to wind things back to a place where I am
able to get there. Don’t get me wrong, the car business can be good and I could survive
in it if only I could figure out how to sidestep the set backs I have encountered (some
self inflicted) during the past few years.
Anyway, I was at my end. You know that place you reach when you are just about to go
off the deep end if one more thing goes wrong? That is where I was. I was wound so
tight that bird droppings on my car could have set me off. For days all I wanted to do
was sleep. I was so tense it hurt to smile and in the car business, one has to smile
when approaching a potential client or else they may get scared away. Oh, they don’t
run away, they just say stuff like; “Thanks for your help we are going to look around.” or
“We have to be somewhere, we will be back.” or “Give us your card, we will call you.”
They never do.
Let me back up a minute. Three months prior to this I had an okay month. I had earned
enough to feed the bull dog but not enough to catch up. I thought that was a sign that
things were finally beginning to improve. The next month I fell flat on my face. That
month it seemed I could not close a door. The next month was no better. When this
happens, I begin to question everything. Depending on how long it lasts, I will find
myself analyzing that bad thing I did in the second grade & wondering if the current
situation is pay back for it.
In the car business, we salesmen get this thing called a draw. It is a small bi-weekly
check given to us to make sure we have gas & lunch money until pay day which in most
dealerships is once a month. It is drawn against commission which means it has to be
paid back, hence the name draw. Anyway, the next month I earned enough to repay my
draw from the previous month and cover my draw from the current but not enough to
feed the bull dog. By the way, my draw goes to cover my child support. Now at that
point I was down three months and even if the current month was to be a good one, I
could not pay anybody anything for yet another month since we only get paid once a
month. As it was my phone was already ringing of the hook and I was tired of answering
it. So tired that I just wanted to jump out of a window. Problem is none of mine are high
enough to do any real damage. I am telling you all of this because I thought for sure
God was going to bail me out at the last minute with a run of sales just so I would know
it was a blessing from Him and not my own efforts. So, I prayed to Him for help, I prayed
some more and then I prayed some more. I even had others praying for me. Finally
after three months of struggle and almost nonstop praying I was done. Not because I
wanted to be, but because I could not hold on anymore. MY faith was dwindling. I had
crossed all deadlines and broken multiple promises hoping things would improve which
they had not. On the last day of the fourth month my father comes over to my house
and out of the blue asks if I need any help. I being the proud man that he raised me to
be answered, “It is tight but we are hanging in.” The lights were still on and so was the
gas. I did not know for how much longer, but they were still on. He did not press the
issue he simply said, “Let me know.” Now understand this, it was not all pride that kept
me from accepting his help. I was trying to be considerate of him as well. The next day
he and I were on the phone and again he asked if I needed any help. I knew we did but
I wanted to take care of my family myself. I wanted the means by which my family was
taken care of to come through my labor. Since I sell cars, I expected to sell a fleet of
them to be able to pay all my bills. It did not happen cause God had another plan. The
funny thing is I was steady asking God to help me and He was; only I did not recognize
this because His plans were not my plans. I don’t think a day went by in the previous
three months where I did not murmur in some way shape or form to my Heavenly father
that I needed help. I kept showing up for work expecting Him to bless my sales since
after all, selling cars is what I do for a living. Day after day it did not happen. After the
first month I just figured, He will look out for me next month. After the second month I
figured, He was just waiting till the last minute to show up. The third month past and the
sales still did not fall into place. Okay, now I know for sure it is going to take a miracle to
catch up. “God, I already know that it is going to take You blessing me for us to catch up
so You can kick in any time now.”
It was October 1st and I dragged out of bed. I almost did not get out of it at all. I drove
to work feeling paralyzed. I had begun to question my faith, my means, my career and
everything else. I was so pressed that for a minute I even wondered how I could get
out of this deal so my wife could set things straight with the life insurance money. That
thought was gone just as quick as it came. Anyway, that same day in yet another
conversation with my father he again offered me his help. Not knowing where else to
turn; I accepted his generosity still feeling funny about not taking care of matters myself
since after all I am a grown man with my own family who should be able to hold his own
right? He and I hung up and I continued making my daily phone calls. Not even an hour
later while I was on the phone a customer pulled on the lot. I was the only one in the
office at the time so I had to cut my call short to go address this customers needs.
He exited his vehicle and walked straight to an Escalade which was sitting on our front
line. I got out of my chair & walked out of the building toward him. We both introduced
ourselves. As we talked he informed me that he was on a fact finding mission and he
was not yet ready to buy a car, he just felt like coming by to look. That is just what I
needed, another looker. I am so broke that I can’t afford to pay attention and all I seem
to be getting are the lookers. Never the less I continued to talk with him and to my
surprise found him interesting. In no time we had stopped talking cars and began talking
God. That is when he told me a story from his own life of how he expected God’s
blessing to come in a certain package. As he told the story in great detail I felt my eyes
tear because I no longer heard him talking about himself, but I heard him talking about
me. I tried to validate this visit by asking him if he had planned to stop at the dealership
when he woke up that morning and he told me, “No.” I then asked him what he did and
he responded, “I am a preacher.” “Wow” I thought to myself, “What are the chances
that a preacher not really looking for a car would stop here today and tell me this story
the very same day I begged God to tell me something?” Since he himself told me that he
was not yet in the market I went out on a limb and asked, “Why did you come here
today?” He paused and then looked straight at me over the top of his sunglasses and
said, “I just felt led.” That is when I knew that God was indeed already trying to help
me. The problem was on my part. He was not helping me as I had expected Him to help
me, but just the same, He was. To this point I was unable to be blessed by His blessing
because it was not being delivered the way I had expected. I expected to sell cars to
make ends meet, and He was nudging my father to help me. To you this may not seem
like a big deal. To me however it is almost as though the earth moved on my behalf,
especially if you knew my father. Not only did God answer my prayer he sent a
messenger, a complete stranger to tell me how He had been trying to answer it. How
cool is that? Now if you too are a skeptic, I know you are saying that people see what
they want to see and hear what they want to hear. I use to think like that too. I am the
biggest skeptic there is when it comes to stuff like that, however there are some things
that just can't be denied. This guy who came in the lot not even in the market for a car
was sent to me with a message which I had been praying for. He had come to tell me
that the answer to my prayer was right in my face but I was unable to accept it because
it was not packaged the way I expected.
fails, if I want a customer all I have to do is try to go to lunch or get someone on the
telephone. On a good day I can engage fifty or sixty answering machines. Call after call,
machine after machine. Let someone answer the phone who wants to talk and almost
certainly a customer will drive onto the lot at the same time needing help. That is what
happened on this day creating the story I am about to share with you.
It was the beginning of a new month and I was already tense because I was broke and
the previous month was not nearly as productive as I needed it to be. Well, since I am
telling you all my business, I will tell you that the previous four maybe even five months
were not as productive as I needed them to be. I was just about at the end of my rope.
Usually I can fake it pretty well but I was at a point where the weight was just getting
too heavy to carry. I had reached a point of praying regularly but they did not seem to
be heard. Each day I asked God to lead me to a more consistent industry, or at least
show me how to generate a more consistent income. You see in car sales, it is feast or
famine and one never knows which months will be which, which is why we salespeople
have to budget. I know this today, I just have to wind things back to a place where I am
able to get there. Don’t get me wrong, the car business can be good and I could survive
in it if only I could figure out how to sidestep the set backs I have encountered (some
self inflicted) during the past few years.
Anyway, I was at my end. You know that place you reach when you are just about to go
off the deep end if one more thing goes wrong? That is where I was. I was wound so
tight that bird droppings on my car could have set me off. For days all I wanted to do
was sleep. I was so tense it hurt to smile and in the car business, one has to smile
when approaching a potential client or else they may get scared away. Oh, they don’t
run away, they just say stuff like; “Thanks for your help we are going to look around.” or
“We have to be somewhere, we will be back.” or “Give us your card, we will call you.”
They never do.
Let me back up a minute. Three months prior to this I had an okay month. I had earned
enough to feed the bull dog but not enough to catch up. I thought that was a sign that
things were finally beginning to improve. The next month I fell flat on my face. That
month it seemed I could not close a door. The next month was no better. When this
happens, I begin to question everything. Depending on how long it lasts, I will find
myself analyzing that bad thing I did in the second grade & wondering if the current
situation is pay back for it.
In the car business, we salesmen get this thing called a draw. It is a small bi-weekly
check given to us to make sure we have gas & lunch money until pay day which in most
dealerships is once a month. It is drawn against commission which means it has to be
paid back, hence the name draw. Anyway, the next month I earned enough to repay my
draw from the previous month and cover my draw from the current but not enough to
feed the bull dog. By the way, my draw goes to cover my child support. Now at that
point I was down three months and even if the current month was to be a good one, I
could not pay anybody anything for yet another month since we only get paid once a
month. As it was my phone was already ringing of the hook and I was tired of answering
it. So tired that I just wanted to jump out of a window. Problem is none of mine are high
enough to do any real damage. I am telling you all of this because I thought for sure
God was going to bail me out at the last minute with a run of sales just so I would know
it was a blessing from Him and not my own efforts. So, I prayed to Him for help, I prayed
some more and then I prayed some more. I even had others praying for me. Finally
after three months of struggle and almost nonstop praying I was done. Not because I
wanted to be, but because I could not hold on anymore. MY faith was dwindling. I had
crossed all deadlines and broken multiple promises hoping things would improve which
they had not. On the last day of the fourth month my father comes over to my house
and out of the blue asks if I need any help. I being the proud man that he raised me to
be answered, “It is tight but we are hanging in.” The lights were still on and so was the
gas. I did not know for how much longer, but they were still on. He did not press the
issue he simply said, “Let me know.” Now understand this, it was not all pride that kept
me from accepting his help. I was trying to be considerate of him as well. The next day
he and I were on the phone and again he asked if I needed any help. I knew we did but
I wanted to take care of my family myself. I wanted the means by which my family was
taken care of to come through my labor. Since I sell cars, I expected to sell a fleet of
them to be able to pay all my bills. It did not happen cause God had another plan. The
funny thing is I was steady asking God to help me and He was; only I did not recognize
this because His plans were not my plans. I don’t think a day went by in the previous
three months where I did not murmur in some way shape or form to my Heavenly father
that I needed help. I kept showing up for work expecting Him to bless my sales since
after all, selling cars is what I do for a living. Day after day it did not happen. After the
first month I just figured, He will look out for me next month. After the second month I
figured, He was just waiting till the last minute to show up. The third month past and the
sales still did not fall into place. Okay, now I know for sure it is going to take a miracle to
catch up. “God, I already know that it is going to take You blessing me for us to catch up
so You can kick in any time now.”
It was October 1st and I dragged out of bed. I almost did not get out of it at all. I drove
to work feeling paralyzed. I had begun to question my faith, my means, my career and
everything else. I was so pressed that for a minute I even wondered how I could get
out of this deal so my wife could set things straight with the life insurance money. That
thought was gone just as quick as it came. Anyway, that same day in yet another
conversation with my father he again offered me his help. Not knowing where else to
turn; I accepted his generosity still feeling funny about not taking care of matters myself
since after all I am a grown man with my own family who should be able to hold his own
right? He and I hung up and I continued making my daily phone calls. Not even an hour
later while I was on the phone a customer pulled on the lot. I was the only one in the
office at the time so I had to cut my call short to go address this customers needs.
He exited his vehicle and walked straight to an Escalade which was sitting on our front
line. I got out of my chair & walked out of the building toward him. We both introduced
ourselves. As we talked he informed me that he was on a fact finding mission and he
was not yet ready to buy a car, he just felt like coming by to look. That is just what I
needed, another looker. I am so broke that I can’t afford to pay attention and all I seem
to be getting are the lookers. Never the less I continued to talk with him and to my
surprise found him interesting. In no time we had stopped talking cars and began talking
God. That is when he told me a story from his own life of how he expected God’s
blessing to come in a certain package. As he told the story in great detail I felt my eyes
tear because I no longer heard him talking about himself, but I heard him talking about
me. I tried to validate this visit by asking him if he had planned to stop at the dealership
when he woke up that morning and he told me, “No.” I then asked him what he did and
he responded, “I am a preacher.” “Wow” I thought to myself, “What are the chances
that a preacher not really looking for a car would stop here today and tell me this story
the very same day I begged God to tell me something?” Since he himself told me that he
was not yet in the market I went out on a limb and asked, “Why did you come here
today?” He paused and then looked straight at me over the top of his sunglasses and
said, “I just felt led.” That is when I knew that God was indeed already trying to help
me. The problem was on my part. He was not helping me as I had expected Him to help
me, but just the same, He was. To this point I was unable to be blessed by His blessing
because it was not being delivered the way I had expected. I expected to sell cars to
make ends meet, and He was nudging my father to help me. To you this may not seem
like a big deal. To me however it is almost as though the earth moved on my behalf,
especially if you knew my father. Not only did God answer my prayer he sent a
messenger, a complete stranger to tell me how He had been trying to answer it. How
cool is that? Now if you too are a skeptic, I know you are saying that people see what
they want to see and hear what they want to hear. I use to think like that too. I am the
biggest skeptic there is when it comes to stuff like that, however there are some things
that just can't be denied. This guy who came in the lot not even in the market for a car
was sent to me with a message which I had been praying for. He had come to tell me
that the answer to my prayer was right in my face but I was unable to accept it because
it was not packaged the way I expected.
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| MESSENGER, 01-07 |