Whilst waiting at the lights this week I noticed a tradesman’s logo and byline which stood out. It had the name of the business [tiler] and underneath it said ‘we turn up’. That’s it. That’s the selling point. Forget ‘best quality at lowest prices’, or ‘reliable fast and honest’ or any other byline extolling the virtues of the business.It perhaps says a lot about the perception of tradespeople in Australia, that someone would regard the simple act of ‘turning up’ as a selling point. I guess in a world where the perception is that tradespeople DON’T turn up, getting one to turn up could be regarded as a bonus.

That got me too thinking about people in general and their attitude to life and work. How many people do you know who simply just ‘turn up’ for work and punch their card, live till the first tea break, then to lunch, then to afternoon tea and then watch the clock until its time to ‘clock out’?

How many people do you perceive do that with their faith? Or more close to the bone, do you identify with dimensions of your life where the best that people can expect of you is that you ‘turn up’?

Having reflected on the matter I would have to confess that I probably have a shingle that I hang out sometimes saying exactly that - “I turn up”.

I found a great antidote to that attitude in my latest read - ‘The Gospel According to Starbucks’. [yes I know I'm behind the times!]. Leonard Sweet is a feast of a read. His books are hyper - hyper-linked, hyper rich, hyper-imaginative. This particular book is best read by those who have an appreciation of brewed coffee. Unfortunately Australian readers may not be able to identify with the Starbuck’s ‘experience’ as much as Americans due the fact that retail ‘experiences’ imported from the USA get a bit lost in translation and thanks to the casual way in which employees approach the whole culture of the franchise. The description of the Starbucks ‘experience’ in the USA doesn’t ring true for the franchises I’ve visited here in Australia. Gloria Jeans seems to have more of the low lighting, groovy furniture appeal. All this is besides the point.

At the risk of being lazy I have cut an pasted reviews from others sites, firstly Barnes & Noble:

You don’t stand in line at Starbucks® just to buy a cup of coffee. You stop for the experience surrounding the cup of coffee.
Too many of us line up for God out of duty or guilt. We completely miss the warmth and richness of the experience of living with God. If we’d learn to see what God is doing on earth, we could participate fully in the irresistible life that he offers.
You can learn to pay attention like never before, to identify where God is already in business right in your neighborhood. The doors are open and the coffee is brewing. God is serving the refreshing antidote to the unsatisfying, arms-length spiritual life-and he won’t even make you stand in line.
Let Leonard Sweet show you how the passion that Starbucks® has for creating an irresistible experience can connect you with God’s stirring introduction to the experience of faith.

In case you are living underground or in an Amish community and have never heard of Leonard Sweet, here’s a profile:

Leonard Sweet, PhD, is founder and president of SpiritVenture Ministries and serves as the E. Stanley Jones Professor of Evangelism at Drew Theological School in Madison, New Jersey. He also is a Distinguished Visiting Professor at George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon, and the chief writer for preachingplus.com, a resource for pastors and other Christian speakers. A popular speaker himself, Sweet has written more than twenty books, including The Three Hardest Words, Out of the Question…Into the Mystery, AquaChurch, SoulTsunami, and SoulSalsa.

Another reviewer [Kevin Bussey] wrote this summary about the central theme in Sweet’s book:

He uses a acronym EPIC to describe what the church should be like

• E- Experiencial
• P- Participatory
• I- Image-rich
• C- Connective

Experience- Sweet asks when is the last time you saw people lined up to go to church? Well, Everytime I’ve been to Northpoint in Alpharetta I have been in a line. The atmosphere is electric. Sweet says we should be so authentic at our churches that people will line up to hear the message that we have preached through our lives. Again, this isn’t about looking cool or trendy tricks, it is about being authentic.

Participatory-Sweet told a funny story about when he went to a Starbucks in Ohio and ordered a “Black eye” and the barista said that wasn’t in the Starbucks Bible (their handbook). He said Starbucks makes people learn their language and he is multilingual. Sweet said we need to become G.O.O.D. Get Out Of Doors. He said churches need to be less of the Staff performing and more of the church participating.

Image-rich-Sweet said we live in an image rich society. When you go to Starbucks it has an image-rich atmosphere. He said the church needs to preach with passionate images much like Jesus did. He used metaphors. I think I have this one down in my speaking. I usually have about 100 slides per message.

Connective-Finally people love to connect over coffee. Sweet said the church used to be the central place in the community. Meetings such as homeowners, government planning meetings, AA, etc… used to be held at churches. Not much anymore. He said the church should be like the front porch in a home where people feel welcome and hang out.

Do yourself a favor if you think your byline is too close to ‘I turn up’. Aim higher. Final word goes to Paul:

1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.