Speaking of customer service,

A week after I went to the large chain sporting store, I walked into a large local owned sporting store.  I only had one child with me but still intentionally took my time, walking through the entire store looking for one specific item.  Not one of the many employees who were standing around chatting with each other bothering to ask if I needed something or even said “Hi”.  I actually interrupted a conversation of two employees by slipping in-between them to look at something on the rack.  I knew they worked there because they both had name tags on.  They offered no help; they simply looked annoyed that I would have the nerve to interrupt them.  As I walked out the door (still without what I was looking for) I ran in to the owner of the store who only asked what I thought about the decorations on the outside of the store.

Unless I see that they have a darn good price n a specific item, or they are the only place in town that has what I need in a hurry and don’t have time to order something on-line, I can’t imagine going back into that store to buy anything again.

It’s all about the customer service

I went to a large scale sporting outlet store the other day.  I was looking for a couple specific items.  I was greeted at the door as I walked in, then managed to walk through the entire store with 3 kids in tow (so I was not moving very fast) and no one once asked me if I needed any help.  No one asked if there was something specific we were looking for.  None of the many employees we walked by offered any help to us at all.   Not until we were walking out the door and my youngest was READY to go (if you have kids you know what I mean) did any one ask if I found what I needed.   While I did manage to walk  through every department that should have carried the products that I was looking for, I never found what I was looking for amongst the many products on the shelf.  I would be very surprised if they did not have both the items I was looking for, but I won’t know unless I make another trip to the store or look it up on line.

I doubt that I will go on line or bother going back to that store to look again.

First day of the A.R.C. conferance

I came here for the wrong reasons.  I came here for Brandy.  I signed us up so that she might see the vision of A.R.C.  That she might get excited about this group that I am trying to get us tied in with.  I was bummed when she couldn’t come with me.  Then I came so that I might get to meet more people and to get my face out there… to network.  I didn’t think about what God had in store for me.  Kevin McGeorge jokingly said at dinner that I was “going to die tonight,” much to the relief of Tiffany he then continued with, “and be born renewed in Christ.”  I don’t know if he realized how true his statement was even in that time of light hearted joking.  I do wish Brandy were here though…

I do wish Brandy were here with me.  Not for the reasons I originally wanted her to be here for, but because I miss her.  I want to share this time with my wife and friend.  I miss her…

should be sleeping

My wife doesn’t like to sleep next to me any more… in fact, she puts a pillow in-between us to keep a little distance between us at night.  She says that I’m too hot.  I put off so much body heat when I sleep that it keeps her awake.  I’m beginning to see what she means.  I get woken up from time to time, kids crying, dog jumping on or off the bed, Brandy kicking me… and when I try to go back to sleep, I can’t… I’m too dang hot!  I’m just uncomfortable because its soo hot in the bed.  I go check the temp. in the house thinking “surely the AC has gone out”, but noooo, it’s still the bone chilling tem. that brandy like it set at.

 

That’s how I find myself up at 3:30 in the morning reading other peoples blogs, wondering why I haven’t written anything in such a long time.  I’d like to say I haven’t had time but that’s a lie.  I’d like to come up with some good excuse, but there really isn’t any.  I guess the truth is that I’m still acting like Jonah…

Thanks Brandy

OK… this might seem a little complicated to start with, but it involves a conversation with my wife so complicated is the norm…

I was reading some blogs with my wife Brandy, namely Daryl Strickland’s site (the Executive pastor a our church) and read this to her.  Well we got to talking about a friend (Rebekah) who had commented on his blog as well as mine in the same day.  Rebekah had made the comment that she was waiting for something brilliant to happen… well Brandy told Rebekah to “Quit waiting and make something brilliant happen.”  (Believe it or not,that is the short and simple version)

Brandy may have been making a comment to me about a friend, but it is also so applicable to me as well.  A lot of my friends have hear me talking about things I would like to see happen, or things that I would like to be doing… but what am I doing to MAKE these things happen. 

I’m a TOYS-R-US kid

You know, every now and then something really trips me out about growing up.  I went out for a little drive tonight.  I left my house and went out to the beach at 9:pm just for the fun of it.  But that’s not the part that got to me.  What got to me was when I got home… to my house.  I didn’t come home to my parent’s house.  I didn’t come home to my roommates place, or even some hole in the wall that I’m crashing at like I had from time to time in the past, but I came home to MY house that I am buying.  Even beyond that, I said hello to my neighbor.  The guy isn’t my parent’s neighbor.  I have moved beyond associating with my parent’s friends, and friends that I went to school with (even though I still keep in contact with a number of them).  It’s strange, when I talk about “Friend of the Family”, I am referring to people like John and Margaret (whom we named our first child after), or Robert and Laura (Brandy met and got to be good friends with Laura at an aerobics class).  These and most of the other people we associate with are people whom we met while living on our own, making decisions for ourselves.  Even John and June (our neighbors on the other side of our house) are people we associate with because of the decision Brandy and I made to buy the house that we now live in. This stuff really freaks me out from time to time… I never wanted to grow up!!!!  But at least I haven’t grown as old as my Brother.  Jay turns 40 this August!

Grounghogs Day!

It’s one of my favorite holidays!  It’s Groundhog’s Day!  Wait… maybe it’s just one of my favorite movies.  I mean, who doesn’t love Punxsutawney Phil!  A clairvoyant groundhog.  It’s not good enough for you or I to open our door, walk outside and look for our own shadow.Well, Phil just stuck his head out of his hole (with a little help from a couple electrical diodes in said hole) and saw is shadow.  You know what that means, a longer winter.  Six more weeks to be exact.  Good news for my wife, she loves the cold weather.Wouldn’t it be nice if we all had our own personal  Punxsutawney Phil?  I sure wish I had one in my life right now.  It would be great to have some mystic groundhog, rat, squirrel or even a hamster telling us what is going to happen. 

lights the church

My dad use to have a bit of a competition every year with our neighbor to see who would get the Christmas lights on the house first.  The only prize was a little bit o’ bragging rights.  Both my parents and that neighbor have moved out of that neighborhood but the competition still goes on.  Not only does it go on, but my brother has joined in as have I.  Now while we may have all beaten my dad, he does have a good excuse this year seeing as how he is working out of state and is away from home… but you better believe I’m still going to rub it in the next time we talk.

I was putting Christmas lights up on our house Saturday and as I looked around I noticed something.  There were a half dozen other families out that evening putting lights up on their houses as well.  As I sat on my roof, I watched them all for a little while.  Each and every one of us had our own way, our own technique of hanging lights.  Some techniques were simple, some swear by and use the same method year after year, one even looked very complex and required a drawn out diagram to keep it straight.  Mine was fairly simple… I climb up on the roof, take the string of lights that is rolled up on a spool, use these cool clips that I picked up at Lowes a couple years ago and walk around the edge of the roof and sliding the clips that hold the lights under the shingles.  Nice and easy.  I remember my dad use to fight with the strand of lights then laid them out along the house and take a big-ol-stapler and staple the strand to the face of the eves.  My neighbor John has these small little loops on the front of his house that you can’t see unless you really look for them, and uses zip-ties to hang the strand to those same loops every year.

Yeah yeah yeah… so what’s the point right?  Nice touchy-feely story, but who cares, eh?  I’ve been hearing a lot of people arguing… no, debating, let’s say discussing the different ways a church should be set up.  The teaching style, the worship style, even the way the entrance/lobby is set up.  The church I go to (www.lifepointnow.com ) is very “seeker” oriented.  My friends’ church (http://lifecc.com/index.php ) isn’t so progressive but they still have a big loud band.  There’s a church down the road that is still using hymns (ok there are a lot still using hymns).  So who is right?  They all are… well at least they all have merit.  I may not agree with some of the methods of these other churches, but as long as there is growth, they are obviously doing something right.  As long as their processes are reaching the lost, as long as the techniques are centered on Christ… who am I to say that my neighbor is wrong using zip-ties, or using a drawn out diagram to hang lights.  As long as the glory is going to God, as long as Christ’s name is being taken to the world…

Wise Old Man

A wise man told me something recently that has really got me thinking lately.  I can’t remember the exact words right now but it came down to something like this, I want everything that God wants to give me.  You know, I say things like that for my own life, but do I really mean it?  Do I live like I want what God wants for me?  Well… let me tell you where this really came from…

OK, the “wise man” was actually my 4 year old son… and his exact words were, “I want everything that Nanny wants to give me!”  He was looking in a toy catalogue from Wal-Mart drooling all over all the wonderful things that his Nanny (that’s his Grandmother for all you non-southerners) could buy for him, one marvelous toy after the other.  That really hit me.  The first thought I had, after the initial chuckle, was how great it would be to have that kind of passion for the things that God wants to give us, the love, guidance, compassion, opportunity to serve (that comes into play later in what Dawson said) all the blessings that God has in store for us.  I remember an old song we use to sing in Sunday school,

     Behold what manner of love the Father as given unto us,

     Behold what manner of love the Father has given unto us.

     That we should be called the sons of God,

     That we should be called the sons of God.

As if we need more than that.  Even so, there is so much more there for us waiting.  God has the BEST toy catalogue sitting on his desk, just waiting to give us so much more then we could ever imagine… 

Now That’s Harsh

Sometimes I hate going to a big conference like Catalyst.  Well, it’s not that I don’t like going, I love going.  I just hate coming home some times.  Don’t get me wrong… I loved coming home and seeing my family.  I have a fabulous family, a great wife, and three wonderful kids.  The problem showed up last night, sitting in my living room realizing that my company has failed.  Sitting there trying to figure out what bill I was going to skip.  It’s harsh going from that extreme spiritual and emotional high, to the low like last night.  So the question is what I will do with it.  Do I just curl up in the corner, admit defeat and give up the way I want to?  Go back to the grind getting a job I won’t like that won’t let me see my family again?  Or do I use the strength that God gives me and continue perusing the vision that he has given me for full time ministry?