day 1362: Service Wow!

"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."

I was so fortunate to have been able to attend four days of The Masters this past weekend in Augusta, Georgia.  I have been to lots of events, but nothing like this.  Beyond the beauty, the majesty and the tradition, the customer service at the event (for 200,000 people) was beyond anything I had ever experienced.  No matter where you went, what you did, or who you interacted with, every bit of how it could be the best for an attendee has been thought through and is executed upon daily. They have it right, and anyone who wants to send someone in their organization someplace to get their minds wrapped around how to deliver a service wow, should be working on how to get that person a ticket to next year's Master Tournament. 

What also happened to me while in the midst of all that great service was that I found myself wanting to emulate the same in how I treated other attendees.  And, with the way that each person was respectful to others property, space and goings about, proved to me that we can co-exist in a much more accommodating and serving way.  I was reminded more than once that our example in how we treat and serve others is a Christ-like example.  When everyone is acting in an attitude of service, it is obvious and the opposite stands out distinctly.  When we live out our actions with a heart and attitude of service, it stands out just as much and others will take notice.

Reference: Matthew 20:28 (New Living Translation)

day 1358: Controlling Ourselves

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.."

I've been at The Masters this week.  There are some very controlled golfers and then there are ones when they make one bad shot after another, they let those around them know that they have done so. Self control is one of the areas in life that others can immediately tell if you are good or bad at it personally. It is in some ways a trait that is quite different than others, as it is one that can allow for the others to either be affected by you, or not. Why I think it is important is that it is an area that is really about being human and if we don't have self-control we can end up messing up lots of good things. A few years ago the New York Times called out the CEO of Yahoo! for her continued use of expletives and then used their failing stock price and underlying business fundamentals as a way of saying, keep the four letter words in your mouth, because even if we did want to tolerate them, you don't have the business results to get us to turn a deaf ear.

Our language is a central area for our self-control (which is a fruit of the spirit) to either show itself or be hidden. It's a sure fire way yes, to let everyone know where you stand. One F-bomb in a meeting and if there was any doubt as to what we believe our actions have just settled the score. There are plenty of other ways to outburst that can cause the same reaction, but what comes from our mouth is clear and to the point. Good and bad. If today you are struggling with the language that you use, then fall back onto Galatians and go big with your prayers by asking God to give you the fruit of His spirit and especially self-control. From there, it will be up to you for that fruit to ripen to its fullest or for you to let it go spoiled. A little self control can go a long way.

Reference: Galatians 5:22 (New Living Testament)