Good Morning Team – We were powerfully moved and Blessed by events that occurred at church yesterday and feel compelled to share. 1st – 4 brief comments so you know where we’re coming from;
1. It is our Belief that Tithing is a practical application of your Faith, that it must be to your source of spiritual nourishment, and that we must give without the expectation of receiving, knowing that you will receive in return an amount greater than you have given.
2. The Parable of the Talents has many lessons for us regarding being a good steward, that “talents” can be our skills, and that right actions vs just thoughts are richly rewarded. Thinking, talking about, or wanting to do good is not the same as actually DOing good.
3. The concept of “Pay it Forward” – Rediscovered and made somewhat popular by Benjamin Franklin and super popular in 2000 by the movie with Kevin Spacey & Helen Hunt – means that a “good deed can be repaid to a 3rd party instead”.
4. The economy has resulted in significantly reduced giving to churches while community needs have increased.
The Pastor delivered a clever & brilliant sermon on the Parable of Talents, and had us do a simple but powerful exercise relating to giving and receiving. Then he performed the boldest, most powerful, most loving practical application of Faith I/We have ever witnessed at church; a “Reverse Offering”. The offering baskets were passed out full of envelopes, and every man, woman and child was instructed to take an envelope – a total of 11,000 envelopes for the day. And in that envelope was a $5 bill with 3 simple rules for its use;
1. You can’t spend the money on yourself.
2. You can’t give it back to the church.
3. You have to tell us what you did with the cash.
Imagine the processional effect of 11,000 people focused on Doing Good for others!
After several hours of great discussions before, during and after dinner with our kids, friends, and their kids – regarding the lessons learned and how to best Make a Difference we agreed to Pay It Forward by pooling our resources with other church members and have purchased individual bags of VitaMeal on behalf of those Team Members whom we are aware have recently demonstrated the best use of their “talents” in Serving Others in their communities.
I/we realize that email and blog posts are limited communication tools, lacking emotional and nonverbal cues and yet it is our sincerest desire that readers find our interpretation of yesterday’s events inspiring enough to take action today and Make A Difference in your family and your community. Be Creative.
Peace,
Bill & Julie
About Dr Bill Toth
Bill’s Background
I’m just an average guy who’s learned a few things about Life, Success and Personal Development – thanks to some incredibly good and bad experiences during the past 25+ years. I’ve made many mistakes and have learned to combine down to earth values with a unique ability to distill complex concepts into simple powerful strategies which can be immediately applied to produce measurable results. In short;
“I’ve traveled the territory, drawn a few maps and I’m happy to share them”
I do not consider myself to be an “expert” and my work is never presented as the definitive doctrine on how you should live your life or what it takes to be successful in your business. I am a work in progress and if you were to you join me on life’s journey by hiring me as your coach or partnering with us in business – our learning will very likely be a two way street. In fact, I expect it to be.
“What you know dies with you – what you DO leaves a legacy”
I was raised in upstate New York and eastern Pennsylvania. This rural upbringing is strongly reflected in my personal value hierarchy: Faith > Family > Friends > Fitness and Finance.
Education and a commitment to continuous improvement are next on the list. All these and more are strongly reflected in my coaching, teaching, writing and speaking.
While growing my private practice I also taught Orthopedics and Neurology at both the undergraduate and graduate level, produced a TV show on fitness, appeared on numerous radio and TV programs, authored numerous journal articles, chapters for medical texts, served as vice-president of my state medical association, and started a family. I have had the honor and privilege of consulting with and coaching a diverse population of people from royalty to prisoners, from children to CEO’s, from amateur to professional athletes from 41 countries and people of almost every race, creed, religious belief and nationality.
I am passionately committed to contribution and Living With Intention. Part of my philosophy is to think globally while acting locally. I am a very active member of my church, as well as several community organizations. After church, my favorite philanthropy is the Nourish the Children. I have also performed extensive volunteer work for both the Anthony Robbins Foundation, and the Make a Wish Foundation.
Why become an Entrepreneur?
I became an entrepreneur because after 5 years of Health Care Reform I found I was merely an employee of the various insurance company’s I was interacting with. I became painfully aware I was working more hours for less money and that what I was doing wasn’t working!
At the same time my beautiful daughter, Casey, was born. This was the first time in my life I started to think about my future, and of course hers. When children come into your life, your perspective changes from Firebirds and Ferrari’s to Gymnastics, music lessons, horseback riding and so forth. Suddenly, I had to think longterm – was what I was doing going to provide all the things that a father wants for his children?
In October of 1998 I started my entrepreneurial endeavors on a very part time basis. Less than 3 months later my New Year’s Resolution was to put my practices up for sale. In May of 1999 I sold them and began to work on my dreams and my fortune on a full time basis. From there, it took me a full five years to get to the point where I could do whatever I wanted to do. Along the way I wrote my first book: “Morning Moments”…as well as learning a few things about money, transitioning careers and happiness. I am happy to share what I know, in short again;
“I’ve traveled the territory, drawn a few maps and I’m happy to share them”
In summary; Transitioning careers was the hardest challenge I’ve ever taken up and it’s been the most rewarding! In so many ways, this is the very best personal development seminar I’ve ever taken because I met mySelf and my wife in the process…and every perceived adversity was worth it.
Today, with my wife Julie, we “get to” pay the gift forward by coaching, mentoring others through the same process. There is no greater pleasure than showing others how to earn their freedom and then observing what good they do with it.
Life Will Never Be The Same
