Sweating the details

I had the privilege yesterday of attending Target's 2010 Sustainability Offsite at Solera restaurant in Minneapolis. A great benefit of working at Target is the cool things you get to be a part of due to Target's size and status. Like, having Black Eyed Peas shows up and perform at a team meeting and hearing the founder of the company Method speak to 40 or so people at a Sustainability offsite.

I have always liked Method's products but after hearing Adam Lowry, the founder, speak for and hour and a half, I am now completely sold on the company.

He said that companies must sweat the details. He gave the example of a company called SIGG that sells water bottles that they enthusiastically promote as 'green' and 'earth friendly'. The New York Times busted them and ran an article that decribed how the SIGG bottles contain BPA, a chemical that has been shown to cause birth defects. Because SIGG didn't sweat the details, their inauthenticity was exposed and they lost credibility and trust.

After I finished lunch, I took a few minutes to sit on a bench and reflect on the morning before the afternoon session began.

My mind soon began applying this idea of sweating the details to my personal life.

All too often I think we forget that the devil is in the details, literally.

If I am diligent in my prayer life, love my neighbor as myself, give time and money to the needy, and then go home and snap at my husband or show impatience or idolize a TV show, then where does that leave me?

If I pray for my friend, offer her support and encouragement, and then gossip with her about another friend, what have I gained? What have I shown her that I stand for?

When I was younger, my friends Amy and Jessica and I loved the song "What if I stumble" by DC Talk. It begins with this quote:

"The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips then walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable."

Inauthenticity. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.

It's the small stuff. We're all generally good people. But how do we treat our spouse when we are in a bad mood? How do we treat our children when we are tired or overwhelmed? Because people are watching. I heard the quote once, "your life is the only Bible some people will read". So I am going to start paying more attention to the details in my life and behavior.

I shared these thoughts with Josh last night and after he sat and listened he said, "How do you come up with this stuff?!?!". I don't know! It's just the way I work! I listen to a founder of a cleaning company and then have a revelation about my lifesong. :)