Does convenience matter? Does a positive first experience make a difference?

Earlier today I was running low on gas and decided to stop at a place I don’t normally stop in order to get a few dollars of gas. It was either that or risk running out of gas. So I stopped.

The sign indicated gas cost $3.43 a gallon if paid by cash or the company gas card, which happened to be one of the cards I use. The pump wouldn’t take my card. I was in a hurry, so I decided to use another credit card at the pump. It required two tries before it worked. I could have gone inside and paid for the gas by now…but I hate doing that. I like the convenience of paying at the pump.

So I pumped my few dollars of gas, returned the nozzle to its rightful place and waited for my receipt to print. You know what happened next, don’t you? Instead of printing my receipt, the pump displayed a digital message saying the clerk had my receipt. So I ended up going inside to get the receipt. As I walked out I looked at the receipt. I had been charged eight cents a gallon more because I had not used the company card. I drove away from this particular place of business saying to myself, “This place is a mess. I’ll never stop here again.”

We’ve all had similar experiences. It’s not the end of the world, but it does greatly influence our future purchasing decisions.

The same is true when people show up at our church the first time. It may not seem like a big deal to us, but the small things are really big things to our guests. It influences whether or not they ever “stop here again.”

On Easter Sunday, let’s make sure each and every member of First Baptist bends over backward to make our guests feel welcome and wanted. Let’s do all we can to give them a first class and convenient experience. Let’s arrive early, park in the spaces farthest from the building, sit at the front and in the middle seats on each row. Let’s introduce ourselves to each person we don’t know. Let’s smile, be positive, and not say a single negative word about anything. Let’s sing when the congregation sings, open our Bibles when it’s time to read God’s word, and pray fervently when the invitation is extended.

We don’t want even one guest leaving here that Sunday saying to himself or herself anything remotely like I was saying to myself when I left that convenience store earlier today.

Pastor Steve Hogg