First Royalty Check

Last week, I received my first royalty check. Much like when I received the first copy of my book, I stood there holding it, just taking it in. This journey has been a little surreal for me and I often wonder if it will ever stop.

My check is nothing grand at all, but the amount is not the subject of this post. Most of my sales came within the first few days after I published my book, No One Knows About You, from my friends and family supporting me. I’m so grateful to have an amazing group of friends and of course, my family. So many of them didn’t hesitate to go and purchase a copy of my book and I was overwhelmed by that. Thank you to all that have supported me in buying the book, spreading the word, and encouraging me. It has been so amazing.

I told God that I would donate my first check. Without Him, none of this would even be possible. Furthermore, it’s all His. It always has been and it always will be. None of this is mine. This is why even for further royalty checks from my books, I will continue to give fifty percent right back. Or I guess I should say, God, is letting me have fifty percent. Again, this money is not mine, it’s His.

I have several organizations that my wife and I love to donate to. A few that we frequent are Together We Rise, Living Water International, World Vision, and Operation Underground Railroad. But there has been a new one out there that has recently caught my attention. Believe it or not, I learned about him through TikTok. I know, I never would have imagined. If you’ve ever heard of Aaron Murphy and you’ve seen his videos, you’ll know that it’s hard to watch any of his videos with dry eyes. The guy basically goes around helping others less fortunate than he and he uses all of the donations that are given by his viewers. It’s an AMAZING thing to see if you haven’t already. His mission statement on his site is:

ONE SOUL AT A TIME

Helping Others

“My hope is that the people who’ve watched these videos would remember to feel gratitude for all that they have, and learn how they can help literally change the lives of less fortunate human beings.” – Murphy

It’s a strange coincidence that this is something that I want to instill in my children. Growing up poor it’s not hard for me to be thankful for what I now have, although at times I’m sure we can all get lost in it all. His videos speak to my soul and I am drawn to the kind of ministry he is doing. Whether he considers it ministry or not, he is in fact doing God’s work. No doubt about it. That is why I have no issues adding him to that list of core organizations that we donate to.

Aaron, if you’re reading this one day, I hope you know how much you have touched me with what you do. I pray that I am able to give much more in the future. Keep fighting the good fight, my friend. My God bless you and your friends in all that you do.