Because we've always done it this way

I saw a documentary on Steve Jobs life not too long ago where he said that the most significant moment in his life was when he realized that "reality" wasn't a given but rather was constructed by a previous generation of folks who weren't, in the end, any smarter than he was. Once he realized that, he was willing to poke the "is" to see "what might be."  I watched this documentary interestingly enough on a product that uses a Mac platform.  The point was not lost on me.  I am often frustrated by people when asked why, remark, "because we've always done it this way."  That answer has never set well with me.  Ever.  I  kind of thrive on change.  I redecorate my house like it is a dollhouse.  About the only thing I do the same is eat from Subway frequently.  Mainly because of the spinach.  I love spinach. 

The other extraordinary thing about Steve Jobs was his innovative marketing ideas and his passion for design.  He didn't invent the MP3 player he made the MP3 player better.  He didn't invent he mobile phone, he made the mobile phone better. He thrived on changing what was because he knew what could be was always better.    Perhaps the only other company to have such an impact on the world was Coke.  If you have ever visited the Coke factory in Atlanta, you know what I am talking about.  We went there two summers ago.  I rarely drink soft drinks and never colas, but when I left and went to dinner, I ordered a Coke and continued to do so the rest of the time I was in Atlanta.

The vision behind the Apple Store is “enrich lives."  When you enrich lives magical things start to happen. The soul of the Apple Store is in its people. They are hired, trained, motivated and taught to create magical and memorable moments for their customers. The Apple Store values a magnetic personality as much, if not more so, than technical proficiency. The Apple Store cares less about what you know than it cares about how much you love people.  They also hire for smiles. 

So, this week I was trying to have an enriching experience buying a Tervis cup.  A girlfriend told me I must have one, particularly for the ballfield.  She told me it was the best insulated cup sold.  She was so excited about these cups, she was buying extra straws and had bought a bakers dozen to give away as Mother's Day gifts.  She told me it would be great for my iced tea.  I am seriously addicted to iced tea.  To tell you how addicted I am, a couple of years ago, I switched from sweetened to unsweetened cold turkey.  I lost 10 pounds in 3 months without doing anything else.  Seriously. 

The horrible thing about baseball fields besides being hotter than Hades and dustier than Texas, is they do not carry iced tea in the concession stand.  I have been to about 100 different ballfields and only one made iced tea.  It was in Widner, GA.  Staying in Widner was about the worst hotel experience of my life, but the tea at the ballfield made up for it.  The front desk clerk and I had a verbal battle over my non smoking room.  He tried to tell me that HE was not responsible for the mistake the computer made and I would just have to accept it.  I told him his computer errors were not my problem and I was not leaving his presence till he fixed my reservation.  I told him I was his worst nightmare of an enraged customer and if he thought for one moment, I was accepting sleeping in a smoking room, he was sadly mistaken.  I am not sure where I thought I was going to spend the night in Widner GA other than his hotel, since it was the only one in town, but I was not staying in smoking room.  I continued my tirade with the entire lobby of guests present and had to continue my argument with him on a cellphone from the ballfield.  Apparently, I was so convincing in my argument, that the umpire even said he would never argue a call with me.  Ever.  Needless to say, I got my smoking room and a complete refund.  Yep.  This clerk dude would never be hired by Apple.  Ever. He did not enrich my life and he did not care about me nearly as much as he did his computer reservation program which clearly needed work.  It should have been an Apple product.

So, this week I am at a Tervis store, buying my Tervis cup to carry my tea in at the ballfield, since I never plan on returning to Widner.  Actually, I think the sheriff would meet me at the county line, that is how mad I made front desk dude.  The choices of Tervis cups are overwhelming.  The designs are limitless.  Their about 10 different sizes, with handles, without handles, with lids and straws or without, with lids that are drinkable and some that are not, 8, 12,16 and 32 oz.  Monogramed with anything, designed with your favorite college, MLB, NBA, NFC team or design one that matches your Little League team.  You can have the monogram facing you or not.  Left handed and right handed cups.  You get my drift.  I am rarely a perfectionist.  Just visit my house or read any paper I have ever written.  I don't over edit.  My sister in law was trying to help me with a math assignment once.  She continued to work on the one problem we could not solve after I turned the assignment in.  I told her the B was perfectly acceptable to me.  This drove her crazy.   I rarely am a purist except about grits and tomatoes.  About the only thing I will ever perserverate on is lack of character and not having garden tomatoes in restaurants in NC in July. Then I can get on a soapbox.    However, I was making this a shopping experience and clearly I was driving the sales clerk crazy.  Extremely crazy.  After about 45 minutes of me trying out different Tervis cups, she said, "Honey it is just a cup."   Apple would not hire her either.  Had I been in an Apple store, they would have let me look all day, and given me undivided attention while I choose my Apple product and they would never say, "Honey it is just a laptop."  I eventually found the perfect cup and purposefully took an extra 15 minutes to decide just to irritate the sales clerk.  As I was paying, I felt led to share with her the Apple approach to marketing and told her she might want to consider watching the Stever Jobs documentary.  I think it was the Holy Spirit. Just sayin'.

So what does Apple have to do with Pentecost?  Quite alot I think.  Tomorrow the Church celebrates Pentecost. 

The particular events of Pentecost are described in the Acts of the Apostles: When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. (Acts 2:1-4) . In any passage we read about Spirit's presence, it is as at least as disruptive as it is comforting. Why? Because resurrection isn't more of the same, it's life from death.  It is meant to change us.  And I think the point of Luke's narrative was to tell us this Spirit stuff was way bigger than thought. 

But I don't think we want it that way.  I have never actualy heard anyone pray, "Come, Holy Spirit that we might remain exactly as we are." But that is how we act. 

Most of the time, we resist meaningful change in favor of "the way we have always done things."  We rarely think outside the box like Steve Jobs, because we don't like to believe, that there is no "the way things have always been done." There really is only "the way we've done them in recent meory" -- which of course really means "the way I've gotten used to them being done" and I have no intention of changing.

The Holy Spirit is alot like the Apple store.  It is meant to enrich lives. So tomorrow, we are invited again to change.  We are invited to think about things a little differently and hopefully do things a little differently, because that is how we grow.  We are invited to change from just existing to life anew  We are invited to give up fears, which are usually imaginary, for peace.  We are invited to give up lies we tell ourselves for truth that will set us free.  We are invited to give up being enslaved by the idea of not being ourselves for the knowledge we have already been called God's beloved just because we are. We are invited to give up what we want for what we really need.

Change is hard but it is not impossible and with the help of Spirit, we can do hard things.  You just have to want it.  It is a free gift for the asking.  Just remember Steve Jobs was no smarter than you and he changed the world.

All is grace and counting the endless joys of

change
thinking outside the box
Apple stores
Tervis cups
Iced tea
Newly distressed tables
Brand new windows
Light streaming through windows
Lasagna
Red dresses
Bright red geraniums