From: Tom Cook
To: Recipients
Sent: Tuesday, September 21, 2010 11:09 PM
Subject: Tom's prayer update - September 2010
Dear prayer friends,
I still need your prayers. I said in July "Since December ['09] there have been some changes, but nothing I need to urgently report." Things have come to a point where I really do need to update you.
SHORT VERSION of news/prayer needs:
1. Please pray for needed income in light of developments:
-- May 2010, the P-T weekday "granny sitting" job disappeared w/o warning;
-- Remaining P-T weekend "sign twirling" job is intermittent and inadequate (as well as very rough);
-- No success in landing entry-level computer job since getting out of school; some interviews, but no real hiring; outlook still very bleak;
-- An unusual but very promising business project HAS come my way and am very busy with it, but no income from it until next year;
-- Need enough to live on just til the business launch occurs Winter '11;
-- Could use more (or better) P-T work, cash gifts, or even business investors.
2. Concerning TomsGoodFiles.com, the web site that was my web programming course's final project last summer, it's gradually been growing to the point where it's giving meaningful help to people around the world. Doctors and patients everywhere are raving about it. But it's a big site. Therefore, a summary page was needed that would communicate in a relatively short space all the key elements of QRA, the breakthrough system that saved my life. It's reasonably concise, yet comprehensive. It's called FAQ, Frequently Asked Questions, just like on many web sites. Answers questions and objections very well. I wish to share it with you here; I think you'll like it: http://www.tomsgoodfiles.com/Faq.php. It's especially helpful to anyone who's had surgery of any kind during their life. Has a couple of cool videos, too.
If you have time and inclination, read on for more detail as to what's been happening. (Especially the business thing, as it's very amazing.) And if you do, thank you very much for your patience! (As well as your prayers!)
--TC
LONGER VERSION:
In December, I asked for prayer:
"Now that school is over, please pray for the difficult transition into job-hunting. (And job getting!) It's been slow what with trying to catch up on things..., but the V.R. has a wonderful technician who is patiently coaching me along. I finally got my difficult resume overhauled to our satisfaction. And I'm just now about to start sending it out. (About time, eh, seeing as summer ['09] is long over.) Please pray for God to direct my steps, my mind, my decisions, and my willingness to step outside my comfort zone in MANY ways. Remember that I have not been in a regular programmer job since about 1991!!! I'm a little troubled in a couple ways about the fact that since I started my physical and educational healing, the big mortgage collapse and subsequent recession has occurred, putting many people in hard (or even harder) situations than mine. I felt alone in my trials, but now I'm tempted to feel a bit jealous that so many others are now struggling to get by. Not only are they justifiably taking some of the prayer and sympathy spotlight that I've greatly needed, but there is much greater competition for the job that I now need to find!"
WORK UPDATE:
For 3 years, while getting the great healing through QRA and going back to school, I was floating near the bottom edge financially by having two P-T jobs. The week-day job (1-3 days) was "granny nanny" work for a friend who hired me to watch her 84-year-old mother with dementia. Supplementing that was the weekend sign-twirling. (Some of you have enjoyed seeing that via the pics/video in the Dec. letter: http://www.tomsgoodfiles.com/L20091220.php#workupdate.)
Nobody's hiring entry-level programmers these days. In March 2010, I got a P-T entry-level intern job, but after 3 weeks they realized they should have hired an advanced consultant. (Both another new intern and I were laid off.) Hiring us was their admitted mistake, but our big disappointments. (Even at only $10/hour, a job is a job.) In June, I interviewed for a F-T entry level, but they hired someone else. Similarly so again a week ago, even though the employer admitted I had plusses over the younger applicants.
Each of those 3 leads had come to me through rare emails from Seminole State College where I went for those 6 computer courses '08-'09. All of the many resumes sent to job ads elsewhere have been even more discouraging; never an interview. I'm in the local .NET users group (group of current-tech programmers), and the recruiters that come there (as sponsors) also confirm to me that nobody's hiring entry-level programmers these days. The one positive note has been that my V.R. technician would review my cover letters, help revise as needed, and has confirmed that the resume and cover letters sent have been good. So at least I know I haven't failed due to problems in those.
In May 2010, the week-day "baby sitting" disappeared without warning, forcing the weekend sign-twirling to be the main (only) income. And business has been bad there, too (although it started up again somewhat by July after many weeks of no work). So I'm barely making it week-to-week (sometimes having to ask for extensions), being economically way down somewhat similar to how bad things were when I was twice suicidal, albeit THANKFULLY without brain chemistry problems that I didn't know of at the time and that were caused by those "evil alien invaders" I've written much about. ("Thank you, God, for QRA which saved me life!")
A STRANGE GRADUAL TURN:
Something very strange has been happening in parallel with all this. In May '09, a good friend asked me to help him search for a computer program that would give him the aide in his office's operation that he needs. I'm not good in that particular kind of search, but agreed to help. We agreed to trade services for services as payment. Over months, I found and had his office try several programs, including two they had already tried inadequately. But nothing turned out to be adequate. This slowed way down in Jul-Aug '09 as I was very consumed w/that very difficult web programming course. (Described here: http://www.tomsgoodfiles.com/L20091220.php#school2)
By Nov. '09, I got to thinking to myself... "I'll bet I could now write a system to beat out all these inadequate ones". Yes, perhaps the partial of knowledge of the C# programming language I had gained in those 2 courses at SCC was enough to let me start building a custom system. What I didn't learn there in the courses, I could learn on my own via internet searches. Before Thanksgiving, I secretly began work on a semi-working prototype; a main screen that would execute the most frequent task that my friend's office people have been doing laboriously by hand for years. The advantage of me writing this is that I could know exactly what their operational constraints and factors were, therefore could tailor the design precisely for those needs, in a way done by no other programs (at least none that I could find).
Over the weeks as it began to take shape, I got excited. I finally showed it to the office manager. She said, "I LIKE this!" I hadn't told her where I got it. She told her boss (my friend), and the 3 of us discussed it. "Where did you get it?" they asked. I said somewhat triumphantly, "I made this!" My friend smiled and said, "Tom, I had been thinking in recent weeks that maybe you ought to write a system for us using all that computer course-work you've been taking. And now you've done just that!" So we continued with a modified plan: I'd continue building this new system in exchange for services. I did warn that a custom system would be more expensive than an off-the-shelf package, but we proceeded.
Somewhere over the course of spring/summer 2010 (probably after my friend with the demented mother laid me off), we began to realize that this program could be good enough for many to use. My friend and I came to a cross-roads, as it was becoming too expensive for him to continue aiding in the development... unless he became a joint-owner and we were to jointly market it! In early July, I was providentially enabled to give a demonstration to his headquarters in Texas, via a web connection. Several BIG people were attending this "webinar" (as it's called), and they liked it! Furthermore, they are a ready-made market of THOUSANDS of customers for exactly this kind of software!!
So between the failure of the job market to materialize for me, and the great optimism of key people believing in this product I'm building, I have not actively engaged in job hunting for the last couple of months. Generally, I instead work intensely on this project during the week, then have the crazy and exhausting "dance shows" on Sat. and/or Sun. Yes, if SCC (it's now SSC) sends me another email (like a few weeks ago), my partner and I agree that I should jump at the chance for a job, even if it means delaying the new business. But apart from that, it looks greatly like the Lord is leading me to push ahead for a Winter '10-'11 product launch, using distributors only, and strive hard to survive on "peanuts" (doing the very rough weekend sign work) hoping it will be enough to keep me alive until after the product launch (and the orders start coming in).
ATTITUDE PROBLEMS:
This is a very exciting, yet startling and scary time in several ways. Please note what I said in the review given at the start of my Dec. '09 letter: "1980s-1990s - A number of well-intended decisions made & habits sown that collided in '06-'07 to nearly destroy me". One of those well-intended bad patterns was begun in 1980, when I had built a good software product and sought to market it. (One of the first "computer Bibles, KJV"; I'm sure you never heard of it.) Failed, even though all who used it loved it. I tried hard for 6 long years to market it; virtually total failure. Same thing happened again with each new endeavor I tried, even the P-T weeding business that worked pretty well for the 3 years '04-'06. It was during the failure of *that* business in late '06 that the words of a former pastor from '92 came roaring back to me, "Tom you are not built for being in business; you belong in your own little engineering cubicle working for someone else". I had vehemently denied that all these years, and it took despair and being SUICIDAL to wake me up to that! During the last months of that failing business, I mulled his words over and over again in my soul. "Yes, Pastor John, you were right; you were SO right! I have NO business being in business!"
So God then brought me through the horrors of '06-'07, both the outward crises and the bouts with near suicide, and one outcome was that I never intended to be in business on my own ever again! Never! (At least while single; maybe one day when I'm married and my wife is in business.) Gimme a W-2 job as a faithful employee, and I'll never try to "be the boss" again! You see, while all these years, I've strived to obey and honor God in everything I do, I can look back now and see that from 1980 forward, I had a subtle streak of greed, a not-so-subtle streak of wanting to not have to answer to a boss, and gross lack of respect for the fields of sales and marketing (and my lack of gifting therein). I have repented of these things, and have been gung-ho on becoming a W-2 "engineering-type grunt" (as Pastor John H. had recommended), doing the best I can with my abilities to serve an employer, and let HIM do all the sales and marketing!
I described all of this history of my work and business attitudes to my friend in a 20-minute talk recently, so he understands where I've come. It seems like God was wanting to get my attitudes right (and be willing to be a W-2 employee forever), then He now seems to be enabling this business direction in my life; I'm very startled and amazed! But this time, there would be key differences: I'd never market directly to end-users, and I wouldn't be the sole-owner. My greedy and independent attitudes in the past would have prevented these, but not now. I'm very amazed by this turn of events! Both outwardly and inwardly.
There is lots (TONS) of work, both programming and administrative to get this product ready for launch. Yet, I'm greatly struggling to pay my meager bills now, what with intermittent weekend work only. So would you please pray for me, for God's provision and direction these next several months?? Wisdom for juggling, both in finances and in all my priorities. And if you know of some temporary work that could help keep me afloat for these several months, please send it my way. Hey, I'm open to gifts or even investors! (Will give a good return on this short-term investment.)
STORAGE:
Nothing new here. Stable. Not terribly cheap, though.
HOUSING:
Stable. A nice plus is that the crippled owner cuts my rent back a bit in exchange for aiding him as he goes to bed each night.
HEALTH:
My health improvements have been greatly slowed due to lack of money for some of even the basic maintenance items. But I still enjoy those 4 amazing side-effects of QRA in my life. Except that I've slightly lost a little of that near-miraculous weight gain that I fruitlessly wished for for decades and never got until QRA brought it to me as a mere side-effect. (Read about these amazing side-effects in my Dec. letter here: http://www.tomsgoodfiles.com/L20091220.php#sideeffects)
As you probably know, exercise is one thing I always hated until '95. And for years, I got amazing improvement to health through learning and doing serious volleyball 3 times each week totalling 11 hours a week. A couple months ago, I found opportunities to increase my low 1 time per week back up to 3. So I'm happy about that fact that will help me recoup my lost athletic abilities and advance them eventually. (In fact, I found enough sources there, that I have to refrain somewhat due to lack of time and gas money.)
SCHOOL:
"School? I thought school was over." Yes, it is, but not only am I getting valuable work experience in the C# I learned at school by building this business software for my friend, but I've continued to maintain, improve, and expand the WEB SITE that I built initially as a final project for my summer '09 web programming course. (www.TomsGoodfiles.com) Knowledgable friends have clarified to me that it IS presently archaic in style, to which I have to agree. (But hey, I only had one web course.) But it's the content I've been able to augment and improve. The most noteable feature I've added is something that while moderately small, may actually be the most VALUABLE page of the site. Please check it out:
http://www.tomsgoodfiles.com/Faq.php
It's a Frequently Asked Questions page, somewhat like many web sites have. (I now have it as the very first item on the main menu, but you can use the direct link above.) This is so valuable to the mission of my site (quickly healing nearly every case of nearly every chronic disease on the earth), because it is at the same time, both concise AND comprehensive. All of the major questions about Quantum Reflex Analysis that people might have AND all their objections to it are adequately answered and explained in a reasonably short page. Yes, the other resources (voluminous) are elsewhere at the site, but this one page will explain everything without having to spend hours at the rest of the site. (There's even a couple of short videos.) It's especially helpful to anyone who's had surgery of any kind during their life. This is so exciting as when people finally understand it, they're able to apply in a new way the biblical principle of turning their great adversity (chronic disease) to a great advantage (outrageously great health). And that is thrilling to me!
In June I had an amazing opportunity to sit in on some of the QRA training that doctors receive. An assistant quietly told me that almost everyone in their organization "unofficially" refers my site to patients and QRA doctors alike! When I heard that, I almost wanted to cry with joy (and I almost do right now even as I type this).
SUMMARY:
So in summary, I ask you to pray that God will provide for my financial needs during these present and next several very tough months, as I seek to honor Him through this computer software business. BTW, there is now a PayPal donation button at the site, if you'd like to help in that way. (Again, friends urging me to improve the site in that way.)
I will tell you more about the software project as it pans out. I have to keep some amazing aspects of the project secret for now, but will reveal more later.
Sincerely,
Tom Cook
(407) 897-4063
TomCook @ TomsGoodfiles.com
One day, QRA exams will be as commonplace as dental exams.
Most disease will be gone. Will you hasten the day?
See how I got involved. Visit--> www.TomsGoodFiles.com