So I had to get new glasses the other day. My prescription was two years old and I had been waiting for our flex account to kick in before I renewed it. It was the end of February and I was out of excuses.
Being the bargain shopper that I am, I couldn’t just walk into any place and ask for new glasses. Oh no – I had to hunt for the best deal. I thought I’d found it, but instead I think I found something a little more valuable – a frustrating lesson in the truth of the fine print.
The place I found was a little out of the way (ok, kind of like a 45 minute drive from my front door, but who’s timing?), but the starry promise of a too-good-to-be-true deal lured me in. A complete pair of glasses, 2 free boxes of contacts, two bottles of contact solution and a free pair of sunglasses all for about $170. Amazing, right? I know! If only it were true! My lenses, of course, weren’t covered under the deal, so we had to add on for that. Then the contacts they wanted me to get weren’t covered either, so it was going to be an additional 20-something dollars a box (I gave the trial pair a go, but switched back to the “free” brand). The bottle (yes, count it – the one bottle I actually received….) of contact solution was one of those “Approved For Airline Travel” 3 oz deals. Hmmm. And the sunglasses? Don’t even get me started on those. It should have told me something when the people in the office laughed when I brought them up. They really should have paid me to take those off of their hands….
The saga of the eyeglass place continues to this day, by the way, since the lenses they gave me in my new glasses keep scratching even though I paid extra to have a “scratch resistant” coating on them. The first pair scratched the first day I had them, plus the left side had a bubble defect. The second and third pairs they scratched themselves before I even made it out of the store, not to mention try #2 also had bubble defects. I really just want my money back at this point, but they insist that nothing is wrong with the lenses and want to keep trying. They have one more shot and then I’m going to get ugly….Christian ugly, but ugly nonetheless.
But the glasses turned out to be the first in a line of dupes or near-dupes in my recent history. There was the environmentally concerned water group who wanted to “test” our water, which was apparently code for “door-to-door company that wants to trick you into buying a several thousand dollar filtration system you have to pay for with a massively high-interest loan that won’t even be paid off until your five year old is in middle school”. Then there was the haircut place that insisted I had to buy $26 in shampoo and conditioner when I was only there in the first place because their cuts cost 10 bucks (you do the math….why did they even ask?). Not to mention the tv/phone/internet service deal we were offered, then refused, then offered again, or the vitamin supplement I bought because it was supposed to help stabilize your blood sugar only to find out that it also helps kill your kidneys (minor trade off, right?).
So it is that I have come to realize that nothing is sacred – especially not the truth – when someone has something to gain from you. Some people really will tell you just about anything to gain your trust, especially if it results in a little access to your wallet. It’s really disgusting when you think about it.
Then I started thinking about people who don’t know Christ, but have already figured out that this is the way the world operates. With so many people out there trying to make a buck off of bent truths and loopholes, who can you trust to tell you the truth? And why would you not be tempted to see Christians sharing the gospel of Christ as just another bunch of salesmen out to gain something?
Let’s face it. The Gospel of Christ really sounds too good to be true – that’s the nature of divine mercy and grace, after all. It doesn’t really make “sense” a lot of the time, and there’s no real way to tangibly explain things like faith and prayer. So I think sometimes we try to come up with convenient, attractive and easily distributable packages to present the truth of Christ to others. It makes our task seem easier when we have a well thought-out plan of evangelism under our belt, because this stuff isn’t easy to explain to people! But I realized all over again this morning that I have nothing to gain from “selling” the Gospel, and I shouldn’t give anyone a reason to think that I do.
If the jaded non-Christian (I say “jaded” because I realize not all people think this way) knows that she can’t trust the guy at the electronics store to shoot straight with her if he has more to gain from her buying one product over the other, might she also be weary of us when we try to tell her the Truth about eternity? I think our culture is doing a great job of breeding skepticism in our hearts at every turn. It’s somewhat understandable, then, that people might question what we have to say about Jesus!
I think we need to take a good step back and make sure that we aren’t acting as salesmen on Jesus’ behalf. For one thing, the Holy Spirit doesn’t need a sales pitch. The love of Jesus is more attractive all by itself than anything we could ever think to do to dress it up. And the brutal truths of His death and our sinfulness have a beauty and power of their own that we don’t need to apologize for or try to soften up!
I guess my point is that the gospel of Christ isn’t a “product” to be sold, and furthermore we aren’t salesmen who work on commission who need to worry about pushing it just right. Sure, we’re commanded to tell others about Him, but we shouldn’t feel like we have to “sell” it in a way that will make them buy into Christianity. It isn’t necessary for us (or for Him), and it’s liable to make those jaded skeptics out there dismiss it as one more sales pitch with a hidden catch. If we just tell our story and let the Holy Spirit do the rest, the Truth will be revealed in ways we never could have crafted in the first place.
I’m reminded now of Jesus’ words in Matthew 10:19-20: “Do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” The burden of conviction doesn’t rest on our tongues. It isn’t up to us to construct some formula of words that will make them “get it”. Our job – as ironic as it may sound – is to show up and then get out of the way. We’re just His tools, and no tool is ever meant to do the job on it’s own. (By the way, if you’ve recently bought a tool because the salesman promised you otherwise, you might want to go back and re-read the beginning of this post…)
Father, I pray that I’m not standing in the way of someone coming to know you because I’m trying too hard to “sell” your love. Help me, Lord, to rely on the truth and beauty of your Holy Spirit to speak for itself. Maybe there’s a reason why Your grace and mercy are so hard to explain with mere words….
Being the bargain shopper that I am, I couldn’t just walk into any place and ask for new glasses. Oh no – I had to hunt for the best deal. I thought I’d found it, but instead I think I found something a little more valuable – a frustrating lesson in the truth of the fine print.
The place I found was a little out of the way (ok, kind of like a 45 minute drive from my front door, but who’s timing?), but the starry promise of a too-good-to-be-true deal lured me in. A complete pair of glasses, 2 free boxes of contacts, two bottles of contact solution and a free pair of sunglasses all for about $170. Amazing, right? I know! If only it were true! My lenses, of course, weren’t covered under the deal, so we had to add on for that. Then the contacts they wanted me to get weren’t covered either, so it was going to be an additional 20-something dollars a box (I gave the trial pair a go, but switched back to the “free” brand). The bottle (yes, count it – the one bottle I actually received….) of contact solution was one of those “Approved For Airline Travel” 3 oz deals. Hmmm. And the sunglasses? Don’t even get me started on those. It should have told me something when the people in the office laughed when I brought them up. They really should have paid me to take those off of their hands….
The saga of the eyeglass place continues to this day, by the way, since the lenses they gave me in my new glasses keep scratching even though I paid extra to have a “scratch resistant” coating on them. The first pair scratched the first day I had them, plus the left side had a bubble defect. The second and third pairs they scratched themselves before I even made it out of the store, not to mention try #2 also had bubble defects. I really just want my money back at this point, but they insist that nothing is wrong with the lenses and want to keep trying. They have one more shot and then I’m going to get ugly….Christian ugly, but ugly nonetheless.
But the glasses turned out to be the first in a line of dupes or near-dupes in my recent history. There was the environmentally concerned water group who wanted to “test” our water, which was apparently code for “door-to-door company that wants to trick you into buying a several thousand dollar filtration system you have to pay for with a massively high-interest loan that won’t even be paid off until your five year old is in middle school”. Then there was the haircut place that insisted I had to buy $26 in shampoo and conditioner when I was only there in the first place because their cuts cost 10 bucks (you do the math….why did they even ask?). Not to mention the tv/phone/internet service deal we were offered, then refused, then offered again, or the vitamin supplement I bought because it was supposed to help stabilize your blood sugar only to find out that it also helps kill your kidneys (minor trade off, right?).
So it is that I have come to realize that nothing is sacred – especially not the truth – when someone has something to gain from you. Some people really will tell you just about anything to gain your trust, especially if it results in a little access to your wallet. It’s really disgusting when you think about it.
Then I started thinking about people who don’t know Christ, but have already figured out that this is the way the world operates. With so many people out there trying to make a buck off of bent truths and loopholes, who can you trust to tell you the truth? And why would you not be tempted to see Christians sharing the gospel of Christ as just another bunch of salesmen out to gain something?
Let’s face it. The Gospel of Christ really sounds too good to be true – that’s the nature of divine mercy and grace, after all. It doesn’t really make “sense” a lot of the time, and there’s no real way to tangibly explain things like faith and prayer. So I think sometimes we try to come up with convenient, attractive and easily distributable packages to present the truth of Christ to others. It makes our task seem easier when we have a well thought-out plan of evangelism under our belt, because this stuff isn’t easy to explain to people! But I realized all over again this morning that I have nothing to gain from “selling” the Gospel, and I shouldn’t give anyone a reason to think that I do.
If the jaded non-Christian (I say “jaded” because I realize not all people think this way) knows that she can’t trust the guy at the electronics store to shoot straight with her if he has more to gain from her buying one product over the other, might she also be weary of us when we try to tell her the Truth about eternity? I think our culture is doing a great job of breeding skepticism in our hearts at every turn. It’s somewhat understandable, then, that people might question what we have to say about Jesus!
I think we need to take a good step back and make sure that we aren’t acting as salesmen on Jesus’ behalf. For one thing, the Holy Spirit doesn’t need a sales pitch. The love of Jesus is more attractive all by itself than anything we could ever think to do to dress it up. And the brutal truths of His death and our sinfulness have a beauty and power of their own that we don’t need to apologize for or try to soften up!
I guess my point is that the gospel of Christ isn’t a “product” to be sold, and furthermore we aren’t salesmen who work on commission who need to worry about pushing it just right. Sure, we’re commanded to tell others about Him, but we shouldn’t feel like we have to “sell” it in a way that will make them buy into Christianity. It isn’t necessary for us (or for Him), and it’s liable to make those jaded skeptics out there dismiss it as one more sales pitch with a hidden catch. If we just tell our story and let the Holy Spirit do the rest, the Truth will be revealed in ways we never could have crafted in the first place.
I’m reminded now of Jesus’ words in Matthew 10:19-20: “Do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” The burden of conviction doesn’t rest on our tongues. It isn’t up to us to construct some formula of words that will make them “get it”. Our job – as ironic as it may sound – is to show up and then get out of the way. We’re just His tools, and no tool is ever meant to do the job on it’s own. (By the way, if you’ve recently bought a tool because the salesman promised you otherwise, you might want to go back and re-read the beginning of this post…)
Father, I pray that I’m not standing in the way of someone coming to know you because I’m trying too hard to “sell” your love. Help me, Lord, to rely on the truth and beauty of your Holy Spirit to speak for itself. Maybe there’s a reason why Your grace and mercy are so hard to explain with mere words….
1 comment:
Samantha...I had to come on back here...I really enjoyed what I read today. I was going through all the sweet ladies that had posted a comment on my LWG post and was re-visiting some of the sites and came back and realized you had posted again! AND again I enjoyed what your heart says.
(I get my glasses and contacts at Walmart---I am friends with the Dr. there...she is very nice) You have been very nice to the people about your glasses I am sure...but have taken more than most would. I hope you get your glasses and contacts remedied. You may even have to contact the Chamber of Commerce in that area. Or, report them to the better business bureau. I don't know what actions you can take in your area other than that. I'm not advising...just thinking out loud. Bless your heart for all that you have endured with them already!
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