Ten years ago I felt compelled to try to buy a radio station and turn it into a Christian ministry. I didn’t have the money, but I still wanted to do it. As we sometimes say, it was really “on my heart”. So I got a home-equity loan, sold my truck, borrowed a little from my mother, and finally scraped up enough for a down payment on a little country AM station. I also signed a ten-year note for three thousand dollars a month.
Looking back now, I laugh at how I brought a trunk-load of Gospel “records” into the studio to play. (Do you remember records, played on a turntable?) I had never even touched a CD, much less a computer! Even in 1995, I was hopelessly out-of-date. But here I was, “owner” of a radio station. It didn’t take long for “buyer’s remorse” to set in. All alone in that little studio, “over my head” in debt, all of my doubts and fears surfaced. “What if I have made a huge mistake? What if nobody will listen to a little Gospel station? What if I can’t sell any advertising? What if I go bankrupt? What if I lose my house? What if we go broke and I can’t pay this bill and my wife leaves and my dog starves and my friends say they don’t know me and my grass grows up because I don’t have gas for the lawn-mower and people say they knew all along I was a loser, and what if……?” I began to cry. Exhausted, confused, and terrified, I wept over my lost safety and security. I wanted to turn back, but it was too late.
What happened next is something I shall never ever forget. (I promise you, this is exactly what happened!) Even as I was crying, at that very moment, there came a knock on my door. There stood a man I had never seen before. He asked me “What is this place?” I wiped my tears and told him it was a radio station. This strange man paused, looked me in the eye, and said, “Sir, I don’t know what you are trying to do, but as I was driving down the highway, a voice spoke to me in my car. I believe it was the voice of the Lord, telling me to turn around at once! So I turned around! I drove for a few miles, and then I had a strong impression to turn into your driveway and come to this building.” After pausing again, he continued. “I am here to tell you, sir, that you have NOT made a mistake! You are in the right place, you are going to be blessed, and He will meet your every need. Don’t be afraid!” He then said a prayer for me and drove away.
Beginning then, and for more than four years in that little radio station, those words were proven true. What a time we had there! We didn’t get rich, but we had so much fun and excitement! We worked hard, learned a lot, and the broadcasting helped a lot of people. And the payments were made on time, every time. I use this little story to remind myself, and you too, that unusual things will happen to us only if we are willing to be in a position where the unusual is what we need. When we “stick our necks out”, dramatic things can happen. When we do these things to help others, we may see a lot of what I call “divine coincidences”, or “minor miracles”. But they’re not “minor” when they are happening to YOU!
My challenge to you is not that you go do something impulsive and stupid. I’m not here to mess up your life, but to awaken it. I’m here simply to say, “Follow your dreams, take the chance, break out of the rut, attempt something special!” Trust me– you may cry, you may get scared to death, you might even fail. But in the end you will be glad you tried.
Lee Ann Womack puts it best:
“I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance- never settle for the path of least resistance
“Living might mean taking chances, but they’re worth taking. Loving might be a mistake, but it’s worth making.
“Don’t let some hell-bent heart leave you bitter- When you come close to selling out, reconsider.
“Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance. And when you get the chance to sit it out or dance…. I hope you dance.”
Can you hear the faint sound of music playing somewhere? If you can, this might be your song. Don’t sit it out!
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