My Faith Story
Losing a job was only the tip of the iceberg for me. A little over two years ago my life changed on a dime. It was March 2011 and I was enjoying the good life. I had a great management position with the City of Houston, was earning a good income, drove a luxury vehicle(Mercedes), and had a nice home in Kingwood (an upscale planned community a little North of Houston.). Flash back -- Then, in January 2011 while going for a routine doctor's visit, I was diagnosed with Diabetes. My doctor put me on medications and told me to watch my diet to be sure my Diabetes didn't get any worse. On March 21, 2011 several days before my birthday, I was bitten by a brown recluse spider. The very next day my left foot started to swell real bad. The next day my toes started to get red. The following day the toes turned purple. Then finally on the fourth they turned black. That is when I decided to go to the doctor. He had me admitted immediately to the hospital. When I got there the hospital staff rushed me immediately to the operating room for surgery. Since I was a high risk patient for surgery they gave me a 47% chance of survival. Well, I made it through that surgery but not without complications. All my vital organs collapsed at once and I was in a coma for five days. The doctor told my daughter to contact the family and make arrangements with a funeral home because they didn't think I was going to make it. They pulled the plug on the sixth day and against all odds, I did make it and came out of my coma when they took me off life support. Then after that I began to have a rapid recovery to everyone's amazement.
Then about three months after my amputation I developed renal problems and had to be readmitted to the hospital. My stay at home was short-lived. After three weeks of running all types of tests on me they discovered I had renal carcinoma and had to have my right kidney removed. The good news was that they got all of the cancer and I didn't need any follow up treatment. I only had a 10% chance of surviving that surgery. Again to everyone's amazement, I made it over another hurdle.. If things weren't challenging enough for me, I contacted a very deadly bacteria in my colon. I had that for several months which impeded my progress in moving forward with getting my artificial leg so I could learn to walk, hike, bike, fly, practice my Kendo, and dance again. I was in constant prayer every day following my recovery from my coma. And, I had thousands of individuals and hundreds of a churches praying for me as well. Isn't social media amazing? Even President Obama found out about my Faith Story and sent me an email thanking me for sharing it with the Whitehouse General Staff. He was very supportive.
I have had many losses over the past two years. I lost my left leg, my right kidney, my home, my pets, my car, my job, my girlfriend of four years, thousands of dollars in copayments for my medical expenses, just to name a few. I have been a good servant of the Lord for a very long time and I kept asking myself and others "why is this happening to me?". Then I heard the answer one day in a message Joel Osteen delivered at Church. This message has become a defining moment in my life and has helped and continues to help me recover from my loses the past two yeas. He said "don't put a question mark where God has put a period.".
For everything in our life that we don't understand and that we question, we need to file it away in a folder in our head named "I don't get it. Why me? ". And then we should just forget about it. This is God's folder and is where He put a period. The period means STOP! Let it go! Leave it to God and He will deliver something even greater for you in the future. Besides gaining more humility over the past two years, I have also learned to not put a question mark where God has put a period.
Let go, let God and move on. God will Bless you for this and You will have a more prosperous and enjoyable life.
I was discharged from the hospital in May of 2012. I am totally independent and living on my own now. I am in a wheelchair but learning to walk with my prostheses. I hope to walk, fly, dance, and practice my Kendo and martial arts again soon. With God as my partner, I will be better than I was before.
I take care of my body by exercising, watching when I eat, what I eat, and how I eat. I also pray and meditate every day and night. By maintaining my disciplinary approach to maintain my physical, emotional, and spiritual health, my body takes care of itself.
I keep very busy with reading, writing my new book (Life After Death: The Return of the Warrior), life coaching, and conducting Leadership Development Consulting for both national and international organizations. I am currently working with the Chinese government and developing a Leadership Development program for them, by their request. But, my greatest passion give to me by The Lord is reaching out to others in pain who need the Lord's Grace and Mercy. I do this by publishing my Samurai Bill Messages on Facebook and on Self Growth website. Radio America has also contacted me about doing a weekly Internet radio. All my messages of healing come from God, through my praying, praising, and mediation. I'm only a vehicle for Him to Bless others through me. God is good all the time.
Yes, I have had many challenges, set backs and losses lately, but God is good. He has plans for me that are far beyond what I imagined or have ever prayed for. I continue to receive blessings every day of my life. God continues to put the right people in my life at the time and my future is looking bright.
The Warrior is not dead. He is back and alive and ready for all the challenges that lay ahead.
Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know what I have planned for you, says the Lord. "I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope."
Dr. Bill Fetter has over 30 years of experience improving organizational performance using management, organization development, training, team development, and executive coaching for strategic change. He has served as both an internal and external consultant and senior manager for several Fortune 200 Companies.
Disabled Veteran, Neuropsychologist, Speaker, Author, Minister, Certified Professional Coach, Former University Professor, Former Space Shuttle Astronaut trainer, Actor, Musician, Performer, Pilot, Life/Relationship Coach.
Bill's track record includes success in corporate, non-profit, and aerospace; including astronaut and crew training for Space Shuttle and the International Space Station, and consulting environments. He is an internationally recognized leader in innovative Training and Development Solutions. Bill has been published in over 55 professional journals, publications, and books; and, has been on TV and Radio stations worldwide for his contributions in advancing learning technologies and cognition.
In addition to Bill's technical training design and development skills, he also has facilitated over 100 seminars and workshops including career development, customer service, time and stress management, management coaching, sales effectiveness, meeting management, performance management, presentation skills, Leadership Development, Samurai Leadership, and many others.
Bill started his professional journey as a Registered and Certified ASCP Microbiologist and was a Clinical Virologist for the Texas State Department of Health.
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