I was in Kansas when I heard that Charlene had been approved to join my practice, beginning June 11th. “Congratulations!” I e-mailed her. I am proud to have you on my team!” After exchanging a flurry of e-mails the prior week, I expected to hear right back from her. However, by the end of the week, I still hadn’t heard a peep. Why?
When I returned home, I heard from Charlene’s former advisor, who called to assist me with her transition to my office.
“Charlene was hospitalized last week,” he said. “Were you aware of that?” I wasn’t. I called her immediately.
Charlene confirmed that she was unexpectedly admitted to the hospital on the 11th and discharged three days later. We spent thirty minutes on the phone, while I listened to her vent her frustrations.
“My former advisor mistreated me,” she said. “He didn’t properly supervise his new assistant, who acted negligently by throwing my paperwork in a drawer instead of sending it to home office.” In the meantime, she had six sales that still needed to be processed and didn’t know how she was going to do it. She was used to being independent, and now she needed help while she was recuperating at home.
Her situation made me wonder, “Did I make the right decision to hire Charlene? Did I hear God’s voice accurately?” In the meantime, I knew what my role was.
Photo Courtesy @IStockphoto.com/Tashka
“Our team will do everything possible to serve you,” I said. “May I come to your house this afternoon to pick up the paperwork and let you prioritize which clients need the highest attention?” She was thrilled.
“Yes, I would appreciate that so much!”
Charlene’s home was thirty minutes away. As I was driving, I prayed, “Lord, please give me confirmation that I heard your voice accurately. I am honestly having second thoughts.”
I parked in front of her house and gathered my notepad and pen. When I knocked on the door, a middle-aged brunette woman with soft features answered the door.
“Is this the home of Charlene?” I asked.
“Yes, it is. I’m Kelly, Charlene’s daughter. Please come in.”
The front hallway led into the living room where I was greeted by Charlene’s husband, Howard. As soon as he saw me, a big smile came across his face.
“I’ve seen you before,” he said. “I used to marshal on the weekends at Avery Ranch Golf Course. I don’t forget female golfers, especially tall ones!” I already felt at home.
Charlene was sitting in a big chair and reached out her arms to hug my neck, even though she couldn’t get up. I found a glider rocker to sit in.
Charlene was ready for me. She had six file folders to hand me. But before she gave me thumbnail sketches on each client, Kelly sat on a sofa across from us, wanting to speak.
“Lee Ann,” she said, “We prayed for you. When my Mother was seeking a new advisor to work with, God brought you and my Mother together. When your meeting is over, would you mind holding hands in a circle while I pray over your practice and this new team relationship?”
I was ecstatic! “I would LOVE to pray with you and your family!” I said, overjoyed. God answered my prayer for confirmation. He introduced me to a family who prayed together and understood the importance of inviting God to lead us in our business. Then Kelly and Howard left the room to give us privacy.
After Charlene updated me on her client cases and prioritized them, Kelly and Howard reappeared to pray with us. We joined hands in the middle of their living room and formed a tight circle as we prayed. Kelly took the lead. We prayed in agreement that the Lord would restore Charlene’s health. Kelly suffers with Lupus and Sjogren’s syndrome, so we asked for a complete healing of her body. We prayed over my practice. We asked the Spirit of God to give us generous wisdom to meet the needs of the clients He has entrusted to us. Kelly specifically prayed that the Lord would prosper us in every way possible for His glory. When our prayer time was over, I knew in my spirit that I heard God’s voice accurately.
When I got back to the office Tuesday morning, I made it a top priority to help Charlene process her paperwork. Although these sales had been closed six weeks ago, she couldn’t receive her commission until the paperwork was complete. Elisha, my office assistant, and I spent the next three days cranking out paperwork for Charlene’s top client. We discovered errors in account set-ups from the former advisor’s office, requiring us to re-establish accounts with correct ownership titles and secure new signatures from clients. We prepared transfer forms and express mailed them to home office. We had rollovers to initiate, annuities to be linked at Ameriprise, and life insurance applications to process. We had twelve different sets of paperwork with new signatures that we hustled to home office. And that was her first client!
We knew home office would process the paperwork quickly. When the first pay period came for Charlene, the Lord provided handsomely! She not only received her commissions, but she was able to reimburse the expenses I incurred for her. That was one of my big concerns, and God proved that He was trustworthy to cover her expenses! That was my second confirmation that I heard His voice accurately.
Charlene is on the mend, while enjoying a strong start in her business. We both learned that God is still in control and still knows how to take care of His children.
Blessings,
Lee Ann
