BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

“While struggling as a kid with my dad’s disappearance, I fell into emotional eating to cope, which resulted in my being overweight. In time, I learned to handle feelings of rejection without overeating. I learned to eat healthy foods, got fit, and discovered my passion for teaching group fitness. “To say that I didn’t fit in with my team at work would be an understatement. Their attitude was, ‘We’re going to work long hours, eat bad food, and then go out to bars to drink and act crazy.’ “I had a great work ethic and did excellent work. What I didn’t do was eat bad food and go out clubbing and drinking with the team. They resented that. I was the only African-American on the team, and my Christian beliefs were a contradiction to their culture. They ostracized me, and I was miserable.” Though she wanted to be free of the situation and the environment, Jasmine chose to not quit her job. “To get my CPA license, I had to work for an accounting firm for two years,” she explained. “I needed to get those two years in.” In her second year with the firm, the persecution went from personal rejection to a point where Jasmine’s team members refused to work with her. “They sent me back to the home office and told everyone there I wasn’t a team player. I had eight months left before I would have logged my two years. No other team would pick me up, so month after month I sat alone in the Deloitte office with nothing to do.” The Prayer of Agreement Needing a break, Jasmine and her mother, Sandy, took vacation time to attend the Southwest Believers’ Convention in Fort Worth. They arrived late Monday night, but Jasmine was up bright and early Tuesday morning to attend the first session of the day. She arrived at the convention center just as Jerry Savelle had begun teaching. “If you’re looking for a new job,” Jerry said, “I want you to stand up.” Jasmine jumped to her feet, as did many others. “Those of you around them, hold out your hands to those standing and agree with them in faith,” he instructed. Then, Jerry prayed over the job status of everyone standing. One month later, Jasmine was back at work when she was called into a meeting with the head partner of the accounting firm and its human resources director. “You’ve been here for a while,” the partner said, “and it looks like no one will pick you up on their team. It’s time for us to go our separate ways. Today will be the last day you have to come into the office. For the next 10 weeks, you’ll draw your regular salary and benefits.” Though the sudden dismissal came as a surprise, Jasmine immediately saw the silver lining it brought with it. “I knew when they offered me 10 weeks of salary and benefits, that it was the hand of the Lord,” Jasmine remembers. “It was a result of Jerry Savelle’s prayer. “The first thing I did was make a list of prayer points for what I wanted in my next job. I asked the Lord that my new job would offer more money than I made before, that it be on the same side of town where I lived, that I work on a team that valued and respected me, that I’d have reasonable hours and great benefits. Faith for a Job “Getting jobs had always been easy for me,” says Jasmine. “When I was in college, I’d been hired as the manager and accountant for a large appraisal company. Now, with Deloitte on my resume, I thought getting another job would be easy. “I applied, applied and applied for jobs, but every time I was their second choice. One month passed. Then two months. Soon, my 10 weeks of salary and benefits were gone. The only income I had was from teaching fitness classes. It was enough to put gas in my car. “The next time I was told that I was a company’s second choice, it got to me. I cried and said, ‘God, You said I would be the head and not the tail. The first and not the last. Why do I keep coming in second; why can’t I get a job?’” Looking online, Jasmine saw a potential job and applied for it. Two weeks later, she received a call from a woman in Florida. “I’m the financial reporting manager for Diamond Resorts,” the woman said. “I’d like to talk to you about your application.” The woman did a phone interview, and then sent Jasmine for a face-to-face interview at the company’s Las Vegas office. During the interview, Jasmine noticed that the word overtime kept cropping up. Her heart sank. She didn’t want to get back into another sweat-shop situation. Pressing on, she continued her job search. * * * * article continues on p. 16 * * * * * ********** ADVERTISEMENT ********** Join us in teaching believers how to use their faith. Partner with KCM KCM/ORG/PARTNERNOW 1-800-600-7395 U.S. only ***************************************** BVOV : 15

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