Today was a busy day for me, Valentine’s Day, of all days. I wished my husband “Happy Valentine’s Day” as I left for a 7:30am meeting. He, too, was leaving right after me. Some people say, “slow down”, ” you’re too busy”, “why work so hard”…and my favorite, “is it really worth it?” I am the first to admit that my “life” is not for everyone. Yes, I am busy. Yes, I know I need to slow down. Yes, I probably work too hard. And, YES, it really is worth it. One of the absolute BIGGEST lessons I have learned in my life is to NEVER QUIT. Keep going and keep moving forward. In the Bible, Paul says to run the race with endurance and to keep the faith until the end. Endurance is not easy and sometimes the days are long but it is so worth it when you look back see the ground that you have been tilling/planting/nurturing is now growing a bountiful crop. That’s awesome.
The other thing I have learned is that the world is full of negative “nay sayers” who challenge and question things that are usually none of their business. That’s okay with me and to be honest, I do try to listen and glean from any wisdom I can from those who are a lot smarter than me. But, at the end of the day, the turtle does win the race. Just keep going…step by step.. baby steps are okay.
About 8 years ago, I convinced Tonilee to put on a women’s conference with me. She hated the idea…I mean really hated it. After a “message from God” (literally), she finally agreed. It was difficult to say the least. If I knew then what I know now, I would have never done it. I was younger and naive. Somehow, some way, every year, we found the courage (lapses of memory) to do this event again and again. It was painful at times, for lots of reasons and every year, I swore it would be the last. But, another lapse of memory would come and here we would go again. Now, in 2013…we are doing #8, out 8th annual women’s conference. Somewhere around year 6, the crowds started coming. Wow…I thought…something has changed. And then I realized what changed, we had tilled the ground, planted the seeds (every year) and kept working the crop…year after year. This past month, we have contacted about 250 churches in San Diego who have requested our cards and information about the event. When we first started, they would ask, “Bobbye and Tonilee who?” It took time to introduce ourselves to them…some how, some way…we NEVER GAVE UP.
About 4 years, I convinced Tonilee to form a new company with me called Media 4 Women (starting to sound familiar). She wasn’t so keen on the idea, maybe didn’t hate it but didn’t like it. Who are we to start a media and marketing company? Boy, did we get the comments on that decision. Lots of opinions and many of them were not so positive. Some how, some way…through difficult challenges and long days…we have built an amazing “little” company. We have helped start dozens of new businesses and have worked with amazing businesses and individuals across the country. I cannot believe all that I have learned in the world of Internet marketing and online social media marketing, to the point that I love helping people learn how use the online tools for themselves. The power of life is in knowledge. The Bible says that My people perish for lack of knowledge. We need to keep learning, keep growing and keep going. NEVER QUIT.
One more example. About 10 years ago, Tonilee and I started writing Daily Devotionals. Guess what? People told us that we would never keep it up. Why bother? 10 years later, these devotionals all over the world. They go out daily via emails. We have a daily devotional app. We have a daily devotional book. And, the devotionals are on numerous websites including Crosswalk.com and Christianity.com. NEVER QUIT.
Please do not allow others to discourage you or hinder your dreams. You are the only one can quit. There is 100% failure rate if you quit. Keep going. My day today was amazing and as I prepare for our weekly Bible study, I truly thank God for His faithfulness and guidance in my life. He makes it worth while and He has plan for all of us. We just have to keep the faith and NEVER QUIT.
Bobbye Brooks
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