DO YOU BELIEVE IN THE PRODUCT?

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received...

1 Corinthians 15:3

In Act II, Scene 1 of Shakespeare's As You Like It, Duke Senior rhapsodizes:

And this our life, exempt from public haunt,

Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,

Sermons in stones, and good in everything.

Relieved that he is no longer working in what he calls the "painted pomp" of politics and now enjoying the sweet rustic outdoors, Duke claims that you can find "books in the running brooks" and "sermons in stones." What he means is that if you look carefully, you can find messages everywhere. Even stones preach sermons if you learn to listen.

The Book of Proverbs states the same truth in a slightly different, but equally poetical manner. In Proverbs 1:21 Solomon says that

"wisdom cries out, she uttereth her voice in the streets."

Both Solomon and Shakespeare realized that if you pay attention, you can find meaning everywhere. You can learn in unlikely places and from unlikely people. That is why I do my best to pay attention. By simply paying attention, you can learn what to do. Or what not to do.

Earlier this week, I saw something that I am still trying to wrap my head around. What I saw was both comical and tragic.

Mrs. Robinson and I love to eat breakfast at a restaurant called Kreation. When I first moved to California, my friend and trainer Dino Mosley told me about it. Most mornings after I work out, I head over to Kreation and order a Chocolate Lovers smoothie (almond milk, peanut butter, cocoa powder and frozen bananas). She prefers the Huevos Cancun (scrambled eggs, avocado, black bean salsa and bacon). Earlier this week while ordering our breakfast, a woman driving a Panera Bread van pulled over, rushed out, and ran into Kreation. She quickly grabbed a fruit juice, paid with her phone without looking at the cashier, rushed back to the van and drove off. The entire episode took two minutes. But I've been thinking about it for two days.

The episode was funny to me because not only was she driving a Panera Bread van, she had on a Panera Bread uniform. Given how early it was, we deduced that she was making deliveries, and decided to stop and get some breakfast - FROM ANOTHER RESTAURANT.

If you didn't know, Panera Bread is also a restaurant (which has a very similar menu to Kreation).

So...she was working for one restaurant, but preferred to eat at another. She made her money at one place. But she preferred to spend it it somewhere else.

On one level, I suppose that there is nothing wrong with what she did. In some ways, it's funny. Maybe she didn't like the food at Panera. But on another level, her behavior points to a very tragic, unfortunately common fact: it is easy to wear the uniform but not believe in the product.

As I watched her, I thought about an old commercial that I absolutely loved. It featured Sy Sperling, the founder of Hair Care For Men. The spot showed several before/after pictures of men who had lost their hair, and then Sy would come on the screen and say "not only am I the President, but I’m also a client." What he was saying is that he believed in the product he was selling (you can watch the commercial here).

It is a fight to have our behavior match our uniform. I don't want to work somewhere and not like the food. Believing in where you are, what you’re doing, and what you’re selling is the key to lasting effectiveness, impact, and fulfillment.

I don't want to spend my life working for one thing but preferring something else. There are so many teachers who don't believe in education, married folk who don't believe in commitment, parents who don't believe in responsibility, Christians who don't believe in redemption, leaders who don't believe in people, doctors who don't like sick people, and politicians who don't believe in policy. They wear the uniform, but they eat somewhere else.

More than 2,000 years ago, the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to a group of Christians who had some questions about the historical validity of their faith. In the second to last chapter, he takes on their biggest question: whether Jesus rose from the dead. I find his answer instructive. Paul tells them I told you what somebody told me. He says "I delivered unto you what I first received." In other words, I believe in the product I'm selling. I want you to believe it because I believe it!

One Sunday after church a man walked up to me and said "Pastor, I really love this church, and I love how you preach." I thanked him, and then asked him how long he had been a member of the church. His response shocked me. He said "I'm not a member of your church." Then I asked "What church are you a member of?" He said “I'm not a member of ANY church.” Then, most surprising of all, he said "I'm not even a Christian. Matter of fact, I don't even know if I believe in God.”

I was puzzled. So I asked him, "if all that is true, then why do you come here?" His response shocked me. He said “I don't believe in this stuff. But I believe that you do." And he walked away.

That was one of the greatest compliments I have ever received.

Whatever you are selling, believe in it! If you start a business, make sure you are the first customer. If you write a book, make sure it’s on your shelf. If you produce a song, make sure it’s on your playlist. If you bake a cake, eat the first slice.

If it’s not good enough for you, why should I buy it?