"That guy can really talk! He should be a preacher!!"
This exclamation came to me last night in an email from someone I had just talked to via speakerphone. Apparently, her mom was in the same room and was eavesdropping on our (my) real estate rant.
My wife had also commentd that she wished that she had recorded my talk because she thought that I would pass out from lack of oxygen. She said that my excitement had me from near screaming to almost whispered tones inaudible and was quite comical to watch.
She actually used a synonym for "comical," but I'll ignore that.
What had me so excited that I was viewed as a "comical, preacher" person was my recent journey into the world of real estate. I've recounted a tad of that story in my last few blog posts. It has been a fascinating few years for me, and I rarely get asked to share my thoughts. So, when someone does ask, I can hardly contain myself.
I am going to have to ask the friend who called me for forgiveness. I went a little long on his dime. In fact, I think that I might have done something that could hinder his "passive income" future. In my enthusiasm, I dumped a boatload of information on him in a short period. Stuff that has taken me months and years to absorb was shared in a forty-five-minute conversation. Please forgive me, my friend!
I am still in the learning phase of this new study and don't want it to seem like I know a lot. However, with that in mind, I am more than willing to share what I am learning because it is some pretty exciting stuff.
I have titled these posts "He Knows the Way that I Take" for a reason. That is because I believe in Almighty God, who is the creator and sustainer of the universe. He knows all, and he cares about you and me. My first focus has to be on what he wants to do in my life and what he wants to do with my life. This knowledge does not mean that he will give me everything that I wish for or that he is this gene-type being who will rescue me from every trial.
God, being God, means that I can have a relationship with him and realize that he is with me in all of the steps that I take. If and when I fall, he is there to help me get up. If I ask for his help, he will guide me through each situation. His answers and support are not always clear and plain, but they are eventually evident. His word, the Bible, has to be a familiar companion and guide during my life's path. That is why the psalmist said, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path (Psalm 119:105).
With this in mind, I am currently sitting on a couch in a rented house in Tatuí, São Paulo, Brazil. My wife and I have been in Brazil with Baptist Mid-Missions for nearly 24 years now. And that, after almost 25 years working at GM as a truck painter. We are here sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ because of how God worked in our "normal" lives. But that is another story for another day. I'm actually working on that book too.
My high-pitched conversation with my friend last night came as a result of God's long and patient work in my life. Way back in 1995ish, someone said to me, "Mike, at your age, most people are thinking about retirement, not about initiating a missionary career. I had to concur; however, I believed and still believe that God had done the initiating. Both Dawn and I knew that it was he who had decided to move us toward Brazil for ministry.
His plan is detailed, and he does not make mistakes. So, how could we go wrong? Don't tell anyone but, I find it easy to go wrong. Don't you? The exciting aspect of life with the Creator God is that he allows us to make mistakes, blunders, and booboos to understand that we need him. At least it has been this way with me.
My investing career has been no exception in regards to this understanding. That career started during a short conversation with my oldest brother in 1973. That brief talk eventually led to a friend buying a duplex (Cue dramatic music.) with me.
More tomorrow
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