The Persuasive Power of a Satisfied Customer

Suppose you’re looking to purchase a new car and are having trouble deciding what to buy. Who would you trust more – the salesperson at the car dealership needing to make a sale to earn a commission or a good friend who recently bought a car similar to what you’re considering? Probably the friend, right?  

Most likely it would be the same if you were shopping for a new state-of-the-art TV, a large kitchen appliance, or even someone to do major renovations in your home. It always helps to ask the opinion of a “satisfied customer” who can speak to a product’s merits from personal experience.

 

The same can be said for matters of faith. With the chaotic state of our world today, with gloom-and-doom dominating the evening news, more and more people are becoming aware of their spiritual needs, the yawning vacuum in their lives the material world seems ill-equipped to fill. At the same time, most of these folks aren’t rushing to church on Sunday mornings.

 

Why is that? There are many reasons, but for one thing, with the plethora of denominations coupled with a multitude of local congregations large and small, the “seeker” hasn’t a clue about where to go. Even if they surf through the channels to find TV preachers, they encounter a vast array of personalities, well-polished speakers who often seem to give contradictory messages. So, who should seekers believe and trust? Is it multiple choice – the old saw, “There are many ways to God. All that matters is that you’re sincere”? Or are there bedrock truths that provide answers for their spiritual questions?

 

This brings us back to the value of a “satisfied customer.” I remember years ago when I was trying to make sense of life in general and my own life in particular. I’d always believed in God in an intellectual way, and the stories I’d heard about Jesus Christ seemed interesting. But was there more to belief in God than sending up occasional “flare prayers” in times of crisis?

 

I had visited some churches and they each had their own rituals and traditions; but one said this while another said that. Who was right?

 

Then God took me and my family to Houston, Texas where my uncle and aunt lived. I had great affection and admiration for them, so when they invited us to their church, we agreed to go. Being new to the area, we didn’t have any better ideas anyway.

 

What I heard at that church resonated with truth. Equally important, it was something my relatives clearly believed in and lived out in their lives. Without question, they were satisfied customers who understood what it meant to know and follow Jesus Christ. Over time that influenced me to take a serious look at the Bible and what it revealed about Jesus. 

 

On TV we often see testimonials from persons (usually actors) who supposedly use and endorse various products, ranging from health insurance and prescription drugs to cereals and laundry detergent. “Take my word for it!” they assure us as they pocket their endorsement checks. Obviously, companies wouldn’t spend big bucks to produce and air commercials for their products if they didn’t work. 

 

As Christ followers, we can give testimonials, too, except we call them testimonies. And we do it not because we’re paid, but because as satisfied customers of the Good News of Jesus Christ, we’re eager for others to know about it as well. We can explain what we believe and tell of the difference it has made in our lives. As 1 Peter 3:15 instructs, “…Always be prepared to give an answer to every who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have….” 

 

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to do this on two separate occasions, first at a funeral for a member of our extended family and then during an interview with someone conducting research on religious beliefs. I don’t know the impact of what I had to say, but all we’re responsible for is giving our answer when someone has asked about what we believe.

 

This is why the remainder of 1 Peter 3:15 and the verse following are so important. They say, “…But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” To be clear, no one spoke negatively about what I expressed, but my desire was to share my faith respectfully with sincere concern for those who were listening.

 

Once we’ve communicated about our faith in Jesus and what He’s done in our lives, we can leave the results to God. As the apostle Paul wrote, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth” (1 Corinthians 3:6). Paul knew he wasn’t the one doing the saving.

 

Reading the book of Acts and several of Paul’s epistles, we find he truly was “ready always to give an answer.” Or as another translation expresses it, “always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you….” 

 

On numerous occasions the one-time zealous persecutor of Christians spoke boldly before government officials and religious leaders who challenged him about his dramatic change of heart. In fact, he wrote to fellow believers in the city of Ephesus, “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should” (Ephesians 6:19-20).

 

As the spiritual need intensifies in a world that’s turning into a spiritual wasteland, are we willing to do the same? Does anyone know that you’re one of Jesus’ “satisfied customers”?

Being Ready for the Moment

When your time comes, whenever some special moment presents itself, will you be ready?

To be ready, it's wise to prepare for what lies in the future.

There’s a line in the animated film, “The Lion King,” in which the villain, Scar, sings to his cohorts, “Be prepared.” It has also been a favored motto in a more positive sense, with the Boy Scouts. More than 100 years ago, an English soldier coined the slogan, explaining it means, “you are always in a state of readiness in mind and body to do your duty.”

This idea is hardly restricted to movie characters or those involved in scouting. It’s a mindset we see manifested nearly every day. Think of 2015, when three Americans aboard an express train to Paris – two of them soldiers – thwarted a terrorist’s attempt to kill dozens of passengers. Or the firefighter who just weeks ago caught an infant dropped down from a window in a burning building

For the sports-minded among us, Tua Tagovailoa serves as an excellent example. A highly regarded, but rarely used freshman quarterback from Hawaii, he was thrust into the spotlight in the second half of this year’s College Football Playoff Championship, leading Alabama to victory. Prior to kickoff, no one predicted him to emerge as star of the game.

Each one of the individuals above was ready for the moment when it came. In their own ways, all had trained their minds and bodies for such a time, even though they could not have envisioned when or how it would appear. For Tagovailoa, it also became a time to acknowledge that God had given him the opportunity, as well as the capacity to respond as needed.

We might not face such dramatic circumstances, but we never know when the moment will come when the Lord calls us to step up. I think of a friend, the general manager of a manufacturing company, who had an unusual, very unexpected opportunity to speak about his faith in Jesus to an important client visiting from another country.

The client had learned about an upcoming event at my friend’s church, which prompted him to ask a series of questions. Coming from a nation where most people follow a very different religion, he expressed sincere curiosity about Christianity and Jesus Christ. My friend responded by following the instructions of 1 Peter 3:15, “… Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

He had been ready for the moment, even without any advance indication that a meaningful spiritual discussion was in the offing.

Being in a state of readiness is important for anyone that follows Christ. I’m reminded of Jesus’ story in Matthew 25 about 10 virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five wisely had taken oil in jars for their lamps; the others did not. While the foolish ones left to retrieve the oil to keep their lamps lighted, the bridegroom arrived. Arriving late, the women weren’t permitted into the banquet hall.

Jesus’ moral to this story was, “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” (Matthew 25:13).

Then there’s the account of the Lord’s night in the garden of Gethsemane, where He agonized in prayer over the trial, scourging and crucifixion He was about to face. He had taken Peter, James and John with Him, admonishing them to, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).

The Bible declares one day Christ will come back, and for that we also need to be ready. Both 1 Thessalonians 5:2 and 2 Peter 3:10 declare, “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” We don’t want to be like the unwise women who were unprepared. Whether it’s the imminent return of Christ, or a spontaneous, unplanned moment when we can perform a very special act of service, will we be ready?