Faith for Restoration
by Melanie Hemry
On Oct. 19, 1987, John Benefiel stared at the computer screen on his desk at the Waterford business complex in Oklahoma City. His mouth felt as dry as the Sahara in summer and his heart raced, fueled by adrenalin. He watched in shock as the DOW JONES STOCK INDEX PLUNGED IN A FREE FALL. He broke out in a cold sweat when it closed, down 22.6 percent, which translated to a loss of $500 billion. Forever known as Black Monday, it was the largest one-day stock market crash in history.
In a single day, John had lost 95 percent of his business.
For the first time in his life, thoughts of suicide circled John’s mind like a vulture circling a carcass. What would he do? How would he support his wife and three children?
John made his living as a stockbroker and registered investment advisor. He had built his business around option strategies which averaged 3 to 4 percent a month and 35 to 40 percent a year. Without the benefit of a salary, he had lived well on his commissions.
Except now the commissions were gone.
John had earned a master’s degree in business administration, and he understood economics. There was no question about what he should do: Stop spending money for anything except the bare necessities; try to find a job somewhere, anywhere, which offered a salary. He suspected that a lot of people were already talking to their attorneys about filing bankruptcy.
His mind drifted back to 1973, in the early days of his career. A local pastor, U.L. Harshfield, had led a pioneer charismatic church in Oklahoma City and brought in a young man by the name of Kenneth Copeland to speak.
John had carried his tape recorder to the first row, where he sat stunned as Kenneth Copeland taught on the laws of prosperity. Line upon line and precept upon precept, the young preacher had shown the scriptural basis for God’s economics. John had never heard those concepts in his college curriculum; nor had he heard them in church.
Now on the brink of financial ruin, he knew he had to take his thoughts captive—and seek the Lord. Leaving his office, he drove to the church to pray.
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BVOV : 11
