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By Dan Smith and Mary Sellon 
Special to the UMConnection

Marcus Buckingham, in his latest book, 'The One Thing You Need to Know,' offers a difficult challenge to pastors and churches. The Apostle Paul seems to set the standard when he boasts of becoming 'all things to all people.' (1 Cor. 9:22)

Buckingham contends that the way to serve in an excellent fashion is to be precise about who we intend to serve and the aim of that service. When we attempt to serve everyone in every way, we end up serving no one very well, let alone with excellence.

Pastors and churches commonly experience the confusion, anxiety, stress and ineffectiveness of attempting to be all things to all people. The Christian mandate, however, is to be concerned with the welfare of all. If we focus on one group, aren?t we shirking our responsibility to others? How can we justifiably narrow our focus when there are so many needs?

Bear with us, for we find that both Paul and Buckingham have something important to say. Paul writes to the faithful and uses Christ?s concern for all creation as basic to his point. Paul reminds us to continually raise the bar in the breadth of our love and service, while Buckingham, using the example of Best Buy stores, points to a path that can help us achieve that intent.

Initially, Best Buy sought to offer the widest variety of equipment at the lowest price. If it was available, they had it. Salespersons, paid by commission, pushed as many gadgets as possible on each person who walked through the doors. Though not intentional, employees typically ended up relating in ways that were inherently disrespectful of Best Buy?s customers, using the customers to fulfill their own needs.

In 1989 the company initiated a change. They chose to clarify their focus about who they sought to serve. They stopped trying to be all things to all people and offering everything to everybody. They shifted their primary focus to serving customers who wanted to integrate the store?s technology into their lives, but didn?t know how. Salespeople were taken off commission and directed to 'help' rather than 'sell.' The focus was placed on serving the smart but confused customer.

The shift may sound merely like playing with words. The effect, however, was powerful. Salespeople experienced:

? A shift from focusing attention on themselves and 'how am I doing?' ? to focusing on the person walking into the store and becoming curious about him or her;

? A shift from 'trying to find the right words to say to influence her' ? to listening so as to learn about the other person and his needs

? A shift from starting with 'what do I want to sell this person?' to 'what does this person need?'

? A shift from anxiety about 'how many sales I make' ? to concern around 'how well have I served this person?'

Although as a corporation Best Buy is clear about the customer group focus for each store, the corporation leaves strategies for connecting with that group up to the imagination and creativity of the employees in each particular store. The focus is determined for them but how they live out connecting with their focus group calls forth their unique gifts, playfulness and ingenuity.

The store may not be all things to all people. It does, however, become more things to more people, which brings us back to the Apostle Paul.

It is not uncommon for us to hear congregants and pastors wish longingly for new people who would help teach Sunday School, bring in new energy, assume some of the workload, and help with the finances. When we view newcomers in that way, we fall into the same trap as the old Best Buy sales force. We end up treating people in ways that are fundamentally disrespectful and counter to the Gospel, using them to fill our own needs.

It is a very different thing to look at a person walking through the door on Sunday morning and becoming curious about him or her and listening so as to learn what he needs. What is the life situation of this person? What does she need in order to step more fully into the person God created her to be? What can we offer to help him experience and embrace transformation?

Do we know as clearly as Best Buy the questions that will frame an interaction and keep it appropriately focused? Until a church learns how to be something to somebody, it is at risk of being very little to anybody.

Dan Smith and Mary Sellon operate the Web site Courageous Space.com. This article reprinted by permission.