“Now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee.”
Genesis 12:1 (KJV)
It was 4:00 a.m. on a clear-skied morning in the Bronx, and I was looking out of my double picture window, 16 floors up in a 33-story building. My view was of the Anne Hutchinson River, glistening silver with reflections of the night sky. In those days, it was murky brown. But at 4:00 a.m. on this particular Sunday morning, it was mirror-like, reflecting a clear night sky.
My daily worship routine was to turn on the lights and read the Bible, then kneel and pray. Then, off with the lights (because they would only reflect me in the window and not let me look out) and talk with God, sometimes aloud, sometimes without spoken words. Then I’d wait for a response. The light would go back on to read the Bible, and so it continued for about two hours until sunrise each morning.
On this Sunday morning, May 21, 2023, my question to the LORD was, “What do I do with my corporation, Qinnamon Botanicals LLC?” A monumental decision needed to be made. Do I continue on the path of seeking funding to expand and employ folks to help me blend and package my teas? That would mean making a decision before my biannual filing in August and figuring out how to discuss these changes with my tax accountant. The thing is, I’d created the corporation as a safety net to support my talks on mental health, and the blended herbal teas were my self-supporting arm of the ministry to small churches and community groups.
Here I was, asking God to guide me, if it was His will, to expand my business. The answer, two words: “Uchee Pines.” Not for an instant did I doubt the source of that voice. My retort was, “That was not the question!”
Come daylight, I went to my bedroom, which doubled as my office, and booted up the computer to check out Uchee Pines. The landing page listed several job postings at the bottom. I looked no further. My thought on that was, “Why do they have so many openings?” Two days later, during my usual morning worship, again, the impression, “Aren’t you going to fill out the application?” There was no escaping the implication. I was to apply for a job at Uchee Pines.
The previous two years had been very difficult ones for me. I had been sick and at home for almost an entire two years from the aftermath of SARS COVID 19. I was one of the very first to be infected. It was early in the pandemic—February 2020. My illness started with a debilitating pain in my right leg and thigh, then moved up my body to create a cytokine storm, also called hypercytokinemia, in my body, where all my organs became swollen, including my heart. It took two years, by the grace of God, along with natural remedies, to get me to a point where I could again walk, with a cane, to the supermarket and back.
It was at this point, when I had recovered enough to attend to my company, and the world was emerging from the lockdown, that the Lord spoke to me to go to Uchee Pines. Because I know His voice, I began to fill out an application and thought, “Surely, they will not accept me, given my history of mental illness, bipolar disorder, and several suicide attempts.” These were outlined in a book I wrote in 2009, The Song in the Silence, which was disclosed on my application. I chose to apply for the receptionist job because I figured there wasn’t much else available that I could do after twenty years of working for myself. However, the Lord directed me to abandon the receptionist application and complete one for the health food store supervisor. “Why, Lord?” I realized I was underselling my abilities, and I shouldn’t do that when God calls. He’s the one to direct my path (Psalm 32:8).
By June, I was interviewed by the Executive Committee of Uchee Pines and accepted. My interview was primarily about the mental illness diagnosis since my resume spoke for itself.
Offer Letter?
In July, I was asked to arrive in August for the admissions position. Its scope was outlined and sent to me, and I accepted the job. August came and went without me making the move south. By late August, I contacted Uchee Pines to ask about the offer letter. There would be none. I would be a volunteer at a missionary outpost. Shock to the system after shock. Surely, this couldn’t be true. Does God do that in this day and age?
Are people asked to root up and go? Sell their home? Give away their belongings? To a place they know not? In 2023?! You see, I hadn’t researched Uchee Pines. The truth is, I didn’t want to know. It was too unreal. My plan was just to leap in blindly with whatever God had in mind.
Honestly, the situation shouldn’t have surprised me. I had been half-packed and looking for a country home for several years. I’d been praying with friends and actively seeking to leave New York City for some time. In fact, it was a running joke that my fate seemed to be that of the man who went about Jerusalem saying, "The end is at hand," yet did not leave. Thankfully, God spared me the fate of the Jerusalem crier. He took me out of the city within four months of putting it on my heart.
The continued miracle was the journey to get to Uchee Pines. My god-daughter’s husband brought a crew to repair the co-op apartment I had occupied for over 30 years, which took several days to complete. Then they packed the truck, hitched my car to it, and drove to Queens for the first leg of the journey. From there, we were to be met by someone who volunteered to fly up to New York from Florida at their expense, and drive the truck with the car hitched to it to Alabama. On the way, within six hours outside of Atlanta, a friend of the driver called to offer a parking space for the night. We met him and his wife at 1:00 a.m. on Friday night at a commercial truck parking facility. The next morning, I was blessed to attend church with Wendy and Colin on the Sabbath.
Uchee Pines had built eight tiny houses with Maranatha volunteers and was praying for missionaries. God needed me to do business His way and to spare me the need to borrow money for an untried venture. By Sunday, September 24th at 10:00 a.m., I arrived on the Uchee Pines campus.
When I arrived, most folks were already preparing for a big wedding on the property that day. No worries for God. He had already arranged for a friend of the driver to travel with us from Atlanta to Seale, Alabama, so there were three of us to unload. Then, a Uchee Pines volunteer, Henry, stopped by before the wedding to help us unload. Of course, I still had too many things for a tiny house, and some were not necessary at this rural location, so I had to get rid of them.
Two years after I arrived at Uchee Pines, I was reflecting on the journey that brought me here. The road was difficult, and the shock of the sudden transplant at times seemed too much to bear. But the memory of how God had led has kept me hopeful and faithful. At one point, I decided to apply to graduate school for a PhD in Research Psychology because, once more, I wanted to chart a course to understand my purpose in God sending me to Uchee Pines. Perhaps I could continue writing and speaking on mental illness to have a semblance of my old life back.
Upon acceptance to the school and program of my choice, and after applying for FAFSA (government financial aid), the Lord redirected me to take the “Lifestyle Educator” course at Uchee Pines instead.
Looking at the certificate of acceptance and the university's letter of acceptance, I weighed the PhD against the six-month Lifestyle Educator course. It was clear to me what God’s guidance was directing me to do. I trust God because He knows me best. When He impressed me that by pursuing the PhD, I was really trying to leave His original plan for me at Uchee Pines, I knew He was right. I had been grappling with the uncertainty of having my business in dormancy, the end of giving mental health talks, and having very little time to think or write, if any at all. But I am on a new path, and He is guiding me. Amid the many challenges, I see the hand of God. I share this story after reading again the book Patriarchs and Prophets by Ellen G. White. The book tells of how God led the Israelites and offers lessons on how He is still leading each of us today, underscoring that He is a living God, active in all our lives.
In July 2025, I moved into the dormitory as a work-study student, taking classes in Lifestyle Education that began in January of 2026. I have no idea what the Lord is ultimately calling me to, but I trust Him. All I know is that I’ve submitted my life to His guidance for thirty-four years now, and He has chosen a path for me to prepare my character and do a work before His second coming. A path to which I pray that I’ll be true to and be grateful for, because, “The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name” (Exodus 15:2-3 KJV).
Call to Action
I’ll leave you with this thought and one that is guiding me on this path, “I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die” (Jeremiah 10:23-24 NLT).
How will you answer the call when it is your turn?
