Carolyn Warren’s Personal Story, Part 2: “Two Surprises Come My Way”

I was surprised to receive a phone call from the former Activities Director at the company where I had worked in sales before the company shut down. I had only known her for a short time, and not very well.

“Carolyn, I have a fabulous new job, and I want you to come work with me,” Allison said. She went on to explain she had become a mortgage loan officer.

“No thank you, I don’t know anything about mortgages or loans,” I replied.

“It doesn’t matter! They will completely train you. You aren’t working yet, right? Just come and interview. I know you can do it,” she said.

I was getting desperate for a new job, so I interviewed, took an IQ test and a personality test, and was hired. Allison was right: they trained us new hires and gave us each a personal mentor.

What I grew to love about the mortgage business is that it is all about the numbers. Either the loan makes good financial sense or it doesn’t. That was the easy part; the guidelines and rules are complex. Every customer presented a different and unique scenario, making every day a learning experience.

Many challenges presented themselves, and in those early days, it was always something. There were credit challenges, income challenges, employment challenges, and if the borrower happened to be perfect, then a weird property challenge would pop up, like the appraiser would discover a hidden propane tank in the yard or the underwriter would question the life of the roof. People were crazy, too. Like they would go out and buy a new car before their loan had closed, which made the loan flip from approval to denial.

I used to receive a lot of phone calls from collection companies and attorneys asking if I could do a debt consolidation refinance for one of their debtors who owed money. That gave me valuable experience into what goes on inside the collection offices (which had secret entrances and the collectors used fake names), and how to negotiate settlements.

After working for the direct lender, I went on to being a full-service mortgage broker, then to working in wholesale as an account executive.

All those seemingly dead-end jobs in my past had served a purpose. As a receptionist, I learned telephone skills. As a secretary, I learned organization. My sales jobs taught me about people and how to listen to their needs and provide excellent service. My last job provided me with a contact who invited me into the mortgage industry. It was all a big puzzle that fit together in time.

One day, a friend invited me to attend her church with her. After the service, the pastor led me back to my Savior. It was like the curtain of heaven rolled back and a funnel of love poured down upon me. It was instant and powerful! God’s love washed away years of pain and confusion. Tears of joy ran down my face. My heart felt like it would burst with gladness. The drive home was 40 minutes, and I wept for joy all the way. God did love me. It was marvelous beyond comprehension! What a great surprise it was!

I pray that you may have the power to grasp how wide, how long, how wide, and how deep is the love of Christ. (Taken from Ephesians 3:17-18.)

I should also mention that a new sweet kitty came into our home. I named her Francie and she brought us much joy.