Thanking God for Adversity...

As the world rang in a new year, one man knew that he would have to do something that he did not want to do. He was going to have to lay off someone that he had learned to respect and established not only on a professional level, but in some ways, on a personal level.  Unfortunately that is just the part of being the boss, you have to make the hard decisions sometimes even when you don't like them.

On January 2nd, that boss went to work and waited on the employee to show up to tell him the terrible news. As if the universe knew what was about to happen, the employee somehow could not get out of his house on a timely manner, got stuck in traffic, etc., but he finally arrived to see his boss standing outside the office front door with a somber look on his face.  The employee got out of his vehicle and proceeded to go shake his bosses hand only to be welcomed with this phrase, "Matthew, I am sorry, but we have to lay you off!"

If you have not figured out yet, this is a true story about me and my former boss, whom I will remain anonymous out of respect for him and the company that I worked for the past 4 years and 9 months.  When I first heard the news, my heart sunk, and my immediate thought was, "How am I supposed to tell my family?"  As I gathered my things, out of what was soon to be my "old" office, I prayed to God to show me how I needed to deal with this.  Every time I asked, I received the same answer: "Your faith and My direction"

As many of you know, that have read my blog in the past, I have never hidden that I am a Christian. I truly believe that God gave me this journey as my destiny.  It is a responsibility that I don't take lightly, but with that being said, I never want my beliefs and faith to ever be pushed on anyone or to close the door on an opportunity to help anyone regardless of faith.  What I can tell you is, we all have the drive to be the best we can be deep down inside.  I know in my life that drive is from God, and I was recently reminded of that through the faith based movie, Facing the Giants.

Facing the Giants is the product of Alex Kendrick, and he was the writer, director, and star of the movie.  It was a low budget film, that in some cases showed in the acting talent, but the "David and Goliath" storyline, revolved around faith and football, was very powerful.  My favorite part of the movie is what is known as the "Death Crawl" scene.  Although it may be about football, it is applicable to every aspect of life:

Footage taken embedded from YouTube

We all have the needed strength to overcome adversity.  Unfortunately the distance that is the hardest to overcome is the 6 to 8 inches between our ears: YOUR MIND!  As you can tell from the clip, Coach Taylor got rid of that distance with a blindfold to prove to his players that we can go further than we ever thought we could by tapping into that internal drive to be the best.  

Those that are reading this right now, I want to tell you that you have a mission and obligation to be your best deep down inside. You are a leader to someone even if you don't realize they are watching.  I hope that I can encourage you to tap into that internal leader and accomplish things that your mind would say is impossible.  It is all about taking one step at a time, keep going, and DON'T QUIT!  Eventually will run out of steps, because you are FINISHED! 

Commit to doing saying iDO! not only for you, but all of those that will follow your leadership.  Don't waste this opportunity!  

So what is my future now that I am no longer employed?  Well, I have decided to answer that question with a parable that was highlighted in the movie:

There is a story of two farmers who were praying for rain during a season of drought. One farmer prayed for rain and planted his field, the other prayed for rain and did not plant his field.

When the rains came, who was ready to reap the harvest? Which farmer are you?

For a long time, I have known that eventually that Shawn's Anomaly was going to demand all of my remaining time that I had left after first giving to God and my family.  I knew that I would probably have to step out on faith and trust in God to provide for me and my family, but I was very afraid to do so.  I sat on one side of a door, comfortable with a good job and salary, while door opened to show me a future with endless possibilities, but uncertainty.  That opportunity demanded a lot of faith in God. God eventually grew inpatient with me staying in my comfort zone. That was confirmed to me in a verse in Revelation 3:8:

The Holy, the True—David's key in his hand, opening doors no one can lock, locking doors no one can open—speaks: "I see what you've done. Now see what I've done. I've opened a door before you that no one can slam shut. You don't have much strength, I know that; you used what you had to keep my Word. You didn't deny me when times were rough. ~The Message Bible

God pushed me through the open door and locked it behind me never letting me go back.  So now, I am the farmer that is preparing my fields.  I must say, out of conviction, this situation will NEVER force me to take a salary from Shawn's Anomaly.  I know how valuable the money donated is to achieving the huge mission before us.

I am now back in school to finish a college degree that will help make me a better leader of Shawn's Anomaly, I am looking for opportunities to do speaking engagements that will encourage others to take the iDO! challenge; and I am setting up a side business that focuses on social media development for individuals and corporations to supplement my income.  Please be praying for my family as we make this transition, and if you know of anyone needing help with their social media needs or has a venue for me to speak, please contact me.

Come on God, I am ready for the rain!

Photo Taken by Shawn' Murphy (3 years old) Copyright 2013