The Possibly Today story

Origin of Possibly Today

While listening to a daily devotional broadcast, a pastor told a story of being on mission in South America. Daily the pastor would work side by side with a gentleman that would seemingly high five two words written in Spanish on the inside of the driver door of their shared work truck each time that they would get out of the truck. So the story continues, the pastor, who spoke enough Spanish to order some food and offer a blessing, finally built the courage to ask the gentleman what the words meant and why the gentleman would slap them each time that he got out of the truck. The gentleman said, “Pastor, they say Possibly Today!”

The explanation goes, since the Bible states that we cannot know the date, time or place of Jesus’ return, the gentleman wants to constantly be ready for his Savior’s return. The words remind him that today could be that day. The words remind him to be the kind of person that would not have to be ashamed if Jesus were standing directly in front of him in that exact moment.

I was so moved by that testimony that by the next day I had the words “Possibly Today” printed and taped up on the inside of my work truck! I would high five the words daily, reminding myself to be more like Jesus. Co-workers that had seen the words would ask me what they meant, and I always welcomed the opportunity to share the testimony that I had heard. Eventually, most people at work knew of Possibly Today and were inspired.

However, when you are making the effort to share Jesus, the evil one will come at you from all directions and with any means possible. The news came down that a terminated employee had filed a lawsuit against my employer for wrongful termination and had included in that lawsuit a claim of religious harassment because they allowed me to post the words “Possibly Today” in the different work trucks that others may drive. Eventually, the harassment portion of the case was dropped and the rest of the case was settled. I, however, had to remove the “Possibly Today” signs from the vehicles.

The wristbands

The search for a replacement “Possibly Today” sign that didn’t break corporate rules had faded from my daily thoughts. I kept the idea of “Possibly Today” in my heart but had pretty much given up on figuring out how to display it without potentially offending anyone. The beauty of the Lord though is that He knows what’s in our heart, and just as an earthly father desires to bless his children, so does our heavenly Father. Sometimes the blessing of the Lord is right in front of our face and we are oblivious to it.

Ya see, the Lord was subtly and not so subtly giving me signs of the direction I was to head, that is, if I truly wanted to obtain the blessing He had for me with “Possibly Today.” I was continuously receiving pop-up ads on my computer whenever I was online. Design your own wristbands, it would say, show the world what you support, advertise your event or business and share them with your friends.

I never was a fan of wristbands with slogans growing up. I considered them fads. It seemed every illness had a ribbon or bracelet growing up. I felt that most people wore them to simply draw attention to themselves, like a fashion statement. Once that illness’s month was up, it was on to a new color. I, however, just could not escape these endless ads. If I was on a news website or a sports site it didn’t matter, I would see an ad for designing your own wristbands. It would literally flash the words show the world what you support!

Just like the woman in the Parable of the Unjust Judge, the Lord would not give up or stop coming to me with the wristbands. God was saying in effect, “click here,” this is how I am going to tip the scales in your favor and turn what was once meant for your harm into something good! So one day, I did it. I clicked that ad and nothing has been the same since.

Designing the wristband

I knew the wristband had to have “Possibly Today” on it. The website also offered to have text on the bottom side of the bracelet. The search did not take long. God is Greater than my Highs and Lows (G>ɅV) was an easy choice to make. The four symbols say it all: when I feel blessed, I need to know that God wants even more for me, and when I feel like I’m down, I know who is with me and is making sure that I come out of that fire unburned and not smelling of smoke.

The colors were the next choices to make. Given my job at FedEx, some have thought my work influenced my choice of colors. Truth be told, I simply Googled the words “colors of Christianity”! As I scrolled through the list of colors and definitions, this is what I found:

• Purple: Trust and Faith
• Green: The breaking of chains
• Orange: The passion of red tempered by the wisdom of yellow

Trusting in the Lord and having faith that Jesus saves meant purple had to be the most visible color. The day I was saved (actually another really cool story), I was told I was at that service to have my chains broken and I was free. That meant having “Possibly Today” in green was a must have. Finally, G>ɅV was to be orange. Passion (red) is always present when we are either on top of the world or at our lowest and looking for a way out. Wisdom (yellow) is what we need when full of passion, so we can be aware enough that we always need to seek the Lord’s advice in all things, good or bad.

Wristbands arrive and take on a whole new meaning

I was quite excited to reveal the wristbands when the order arrived. The first person that I showed the wristband to was my wife Kristen. I re-explained to her what the words and what each color meant. It was in this moment that Kristen expressed what the wristband meant to her! Having lived a life of battling abuse, depression, addiction, self-image and shame, Kristen said:

“To me Possibly Today means, Possibly Today the Lord will give me the strength to get off the couch, Possibly Today I won’t be sad, Possibly Today I won’t have cravings or suffer the afflictions that come with withdrawal, Possibly Today I will love myself, Possibly Today anxiety will lose its grip on me!”

Tears welled up in my eyes. It was such a raw and all too real moment. It was in that moment that I knew these wristbands were the catalyst the Lord was going to use, through myself and others, to offer hope to so many suffering people.

Matthew, my son

My son Matt was always special. Matt lived life at 100mph, always. It didn’t matter what challenge he faced growing up, he would always give 100%. Matt was talented in just about everything he attempted and found himself lavished with praises and hopes of a bright future. Unfortunately, Matt made some poor choices along the way. It started with first trying weed and that grew into a heroin addiction. For years, Matt would try to get clean; he even spent time in rehab. It was the birth of his son Noah that would push him to fight even harder. We all fought hard to help save him from that dark and lonely world.

I saw these wristbands as a way that might help. I couldn’t wait to have the opportunity to see Matt and offer him one and explain what each thing about the wristband meant. That opportunity came two days after the wristbands arrived. I was overjoyed when he invited us to go out to breakfast with him and his love Kendyl. Actually, I was so excited that I managed to leave the wristbands home instead of bringing them with me to the restaurant. Matt was struggling with effects of withdrawal that day as well. I was frustrated. In that moment of disappointment, the Lord spoke to me and said, “You brought his wristband with you, it’s on your own wrist!” Thank you Lord for the instant joy!

I took the wristband off and explained to him the hope that it offered, and that he was to always be reminded by it that he is never alone, and that the wristband that he had was my special band. I could have chosen any band from the multitude that I ordered, but I chose that one, the perfect one, the special one, and I wanted him to have it as a reminder that a part of me was always with him and that God was always with him. I told him that when the day was hard and his faith was small, to remember that I had enough faith for the both of us, and that with that wristband he could use any and all of my faith. I assured him that God offers us a new batch of faith every day, so he need not worry that I would lose mine.

Matt was so excited. It meant the world to him, so much that he swore he would never take it off. I saw Matt every day for the next four days, and each time he would hustle to me and show me that he had the wristband still on and proclaim, “Possibly Today, Pops!” Matt was so inspired that he even asked me if he could get a wristband for Kendyl. “Of course,” I said. Matt didn’t want me to give it to her though; he said he wanted to do it himself. We worked all four nights together until he could explain the whole story and what each word and each color meant from memory. Sadly, we lost Matt in an automobile accident on the fifth day.

The wristband becomes Matt’s legacy

It was exactly one week to the day that I had received the wristbands that we lost Matt. He never was able to present Kendyl with her own. Due to Covid rule changes I was not able to see him until the following Monday (Labor Day). The funeral director brought Matt back to town and called around 9pm and asked if I wanted to finally be able to see my son. I absolutely wanted to and went down with family right away.

Matt was cut from the vehicle, and I was told that they had removed his clothing and all accessories from his body. Matt had also undergone an autopsy at this point. So I went to the funeral home with not only the intention of seeing Matt, but I was also going to give him once again my wristband that I had chosen to replace the original I gave him. While seeing him and telling him how much we loved him, I rubbed his hand and arm. That’s when I felt a bump under the sheet they had him covered up with. I called over to Kevin, the funeral director. I asked him if Matt had on an ID bracelet. Kevin asked why. So I took the opportunity to explain the whole story of the wristbands and how I had brought one to give to Matt. Kevin told us that you don’t get an ID bracelet when you pass away, and he said, “Would you like me to check and see what it is?” Kevin’s assistant had picked Matt up from the autopsy.

It was in that moment that we all found out that Matt had honored his word and had not taken off the wristband. Nobody I have spoken to, from the first responders to the hospital to the medical examiner to the funeral director, can explain why everything was removed from Matt except the wristband. None of the people I spoke with saw the wristband as something religious and thus a reason to potentially leave it on Matt. This simply was a son honoring his word with God’s blessing!

The testimonies from different folks that poured in after Matt’s passing revealed a side of my son I did not know about. These stories told of a loyal, loving friend and brother. Despite struggling to keep himself clean of drugs, he was a staunch fighter for encouraging his friends to get clean. Matt even went as far as driving people that he didn’t know to rehab facilities because they had no other way there. The stories didn’t end there, and honestly I was so proud to get to hear every one of them.

Where Possibly Today is headed

There are many folks who now have wristbands offering them hope in the Lord Jesus. At first I was unsure if the wristbands would be the only calling the Lord would give me. I constantly felt that there would be more to it. I told friends and family that I wasn’t sure what the Lord would ask me to do, but I could use their prayers now and their time and talent later. All have lived up to their guarantee of help thus far.

The goal of Possibly Today is to offer the same hope that we have found in Jesus Christ and to offer the same mercy and grace that He has given us. Our creed is to “Recover, Redeem and Restore”:

1. Recover those who are struggling
2. Redeem them with Jesus Christ
3. Restore them to not just where they were before affliction, but to higher levels

We have distributed over 1,400 wristbands. We started a Facebook group called Possibly Today. We purchased a website, PossiblyToday.org. And we have created multiple clothing designs that encourage.

Finally, we have created the “Leave your struggles at the door, Matt” doormats. These doormats offer hope to those who are struggling. You see, when a person leaves their home, they can leave their struggles at the doormat and not take them with them, and when they return home they can leave their struggles at the doormat before they enter the home.

One example is our doormat for the person struggling with feeling less than, or even depressed. If we are going to make changes in our lives, it starts by re-programming our thoughts to be the thoughts that God has of us. God says I am made in His image, that I am His child and I am wonderfully made. Why then do so many of us think we are not beautiful or worthy of blessings and being loved? Our doormat reminds you every time you leave, with what’s printed on it:

I am beautiful
I am worthy
I am loved

The first declared goal of Possibly Today is to fund at least one day of rehab for someone. Matt would have loved doing that! One day may not seem like much to the average person, but as believers we think the day we pay for may very well just be the day that the Lord uses to break someone’s chains of addiction.

I would absolutely enjoy discussing Possibly Today in person with any and all of you. The opportunity to bless and be blessed resides deep in our hearts.

God bless,
Jim