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The latest iPhone is a huge hit, and a huge PR debacle for Apple, all in the same day. Let’s see if we can think of some lessons for the American church.
In case you’ve been on Mars, the iPhone 3G was launched Friday. Howling customers could be heard in every major city. Still, Apple sold 1 million units. Here’s the story: Plenty of problems, but 1 million iPhones still sold – Technology Live – USATODAY.com
Here are some lessons:
1. When you go public, expect problems. Murphy’s law is very real as Mr. Jobs realized sometime Friday morning. Whatever can go wrong will. So, why not plan for something to go wrong? Church: your sound system will never fail after the service, but always between the sound check that ran to perfection and the chorus of the first song. Have a backup plan–like learning to go unplugged.
Apple could easily have solved their problem by anticipating that iTunes servers would crash from demand. They have enough money for a temporary redundancy to handle the load. Churches don’t so we have to be a little more creative, but we can still anticipate catastrophic failure of the gizmos.
2. Treat people better than expected. Apple made their customers wait in line for a new iPhone. That, in itself is not a problem we’re having in churches these days, nor is it really a problem for Apple. The problem was that once they came inside, people could not get waited on and–because of the crash–their new phones did not work.
Apple got big because it treats it’s customers better than the other tech companies. Last Friday Apple (and AT&T) dropped from excellent to normal by making their customers wait in the heat to spend a lot of money for a product that did not work as promised. They lost their edge and their customers will make them pay. Those who were on the fence will now wait to buy an iPhone or will buy a different product. Expect Apple to offer some freebies to people who were unhappy last Friday. They understand the market.
I’m not comparing the church of Jesus Christ to a plastic cell phone company, but there is a lesson here. The church got big because it treated people with love. In the Book of Acts, the church goes out of its way to love outsiders. Today’s church too often acts unloving and it makes claims and promises we cannot fulfill (like we’ll love you better than the world does).
If we make no false promises, but stick to what God says is in store for His people (the church), we can expect a better result. If we keep our basic promise (love God and love others), we can expect amazing results. Moreover, if we repent for false promises–and outright lies–of the past, we may get some of those on the fence to cross over our way.
3. People will look past problems to get hold of a good thing. Last year’s iPhone sold like crazy. It was gobbling market share like an 80s Pacman game. The new iPhone is selling even faster. To sell one million of anything costing that much in three days is unheard of, but it’s not unlike what happened in the Middle East during the first hundred or so years of Christianity.
The Day of Pentecost saw God’s power in action. People converted to Christianity in amazing numbers. Churches formed all over the region in only a few years. They “turned the whole world upside down” and had “an excellent reputation among outsiders.” The churches thrived even though they had enormous problems. Best I can tell, the only churches doing things well were those at Philippi and Smyrna. The majority of the New Testament is written to churches with major problems.
The American church of 2008 has big problems too. If we do not listen to Scriptural principles and make corrections, many churches will die. At the same time, the church holds the greatest promise of all: salvation and peace with God. Though we have some problems, our product is outstanding.
Let’s refocus on our core message: the Gospel of Jesus Christ. People will respond.
