Customer service
Bek and I went out for breakfast to IHOP like we usually do on Friday's. We figured it would be just like any other day...but we were wrong. I think we went a little bit late (11:30am) because it was super cram packed in there. We didn't end up getting seated until 12:15pm and probably didn't get our food for another 20mins. Surprisingly enought I didn't get cranky like I usually do when I'm starving. This got me thinking a little bit about church. I'm reading a book right now called "first impressions: creating wow experiences in your church."
What would happen if you were to go into a restaurant and no one asked you what your name was. You just stood there...and waited. After a few minutes of waiting you decide that you're just gonna find a seat and hope someone will notice that you are new. You take your jacket off and sit down, clearing your throat loud enough for the booths in your immediate vicinity to notice you. You pick up the menu only to see that it's all in French. You search for words that look somewhat familiar but to no avail. It's all jibberish to you.
Finally, after 15mins, you manage to wave down a waitress. She briskly walks over to your table as if you are the biggest waste of her time. You ask her if you can get a drink and maybe some food but when you try to lock eyes with her you see that she's looking around at all of her other tables that need her assistance. You feel your blood begin to boil a bit as you sit in this high class restaurant getting the worst service ever. After attempting to make this thing work, you grab your jacket and take off. Do you think you will ever go back there again? Didn't think so.
One thing we all understand is customer service. Guests coming to church understand it as well. They may have no clue about God or this new Christianeze language, but they know fake when they see it. They know when they are being treated well. I wonder if we pay enough attention to guests. I wonder if what we do on Sunday's is so geared towards the 65 year veteran Christian folks that the guests who haven't even taken a step towards Jesus are left in a confused state of dislexia. I wonder if when we abandon all effort to communicate the gospel in a creative/innovative and inspiring way, we bring the stats of the declining church on ourselves. When we make no effort to relate to where a guest is at on their journey, why would we expect them to return? This could possibly be why so many Christians that I know have no friends who don't follow Jesus. We are so enamored with our Christian ghetto that we've forgotten how to just be real with people.
Maybe it's time to pop the bubble and crawl into this thing we call culture. Maybe it's time to ask ourselves if the Jesus we say we believe in has any relevance to the world in which we live. If he does, why aren't they getting it? Why aren't they catching it? Why isn't my faith air born? Why can't people see it?
Maybe it's time. Pop your bubble and pass the pin.
What would happen if you were to go into a restaurant and no one asked you what your name was. You just stood there...and waited. After a few minutes of waiting you decide that you're just gonna find a seat and hope someone will notice that you are new. You take your jacket off and sit down, clearing your throat loud enough for the booths in your immediate vicinity to notice you. You pick up the menu only to see that it's all in French. You search for words that look somewhat familiar but to no avail. It's all jibberish to you.
Finally, after 15mins, you manage to wave down a waitress. She briskly walks over to your table as if you are the biggest waste of her time. You ask her if you can get a drink and maybe some food but when you try to lock eyes with her you see that she's looking around at all of her other tables that need her assistance. You feel your blood begin to boil a bit as you sit in this high class restaurant getting the worst service ever. After attempting to make this thing work, you grab your jacket and take off. Do you think you will ever go back there again? Didn't think so.
One thing we all understand is customer service. Guests coming to church understand it as well. They may have no clue about God or this new Christianeze language, but they know fake when they see it. They know when they are being treated well. I wonder if we pay enough attention to guests. I wonder if what we do on Sunday's is so geared towards the 65 year veteran Christian folks that the guests who haven't even taken a step towards Jesus are left in a confused state of dislexia. I wonder if when we abandon all effort to communicate the gospel in a creative/innovative and inspiring way, we bring the stats of the declining church on ourselves. When we make no effort to relate to where a guest is at on their journey, why would we expect them to return? This could possibly be why so many Christians that I know have no friends who don't follow Jesus. We are so enamored with our Christian ghetto that we've forgotten how to just be real with people.
Maybe it's time to pop the bubble and crawl into this thing we call culture. Maybe it's time to ask ourselves if the Jesus we say we believe in has any relevance to the world in which we live. If he does, why aren't they getting it? Why aren't they catching it? Why isn't my faith air born? Why can't people see it?
Maybe it's time. Pop your bubble and pass the pin.
