Sales Reps - Natural Born Evangelists

Mr. Michael Pink

Every company has a cause or purpose for being in business. They hire corporate evangelists (sales people) to persuade others of the merit of their cause as expressed in their product, service or idea. Sales people by definition are evangelists. It's their job to go out into the marketplace and make converts of the non-believing, the uninformed and the antagonists. It's not an easy job, but someone has to do it. Like any other job, the job of corporate evangelist requires a specific skill set, a winning attitude and some governing principles by which to operate.

The successful sales person, one who wins their share of the economic pie without compromising kingdom principles, is well suited for winning souls to Christ. It is perhaps for this reason that so many pastors and evangelists come from a background in sales. Although I believe it's the responsibility of every Christian to be ready to give an answer for the hope that is within, sales people are uniquely trained, and by virtue of their job, have more opportunities to share their faith with others.

The question is, are people asking you the reason for the hope that is within you? Is your hope so evident that others see it and ask? When was the last time someone asked you why you were so positive, so expectant, so hopeful? If you're not getting asked that question, you might want to look a little closer at your own life. The first person to evangelize, to set ablaze with the wonderment of God, is you. If you're not evangelized by the gospel, if it's not self-evident that something is radically different about you in the way you respond to life, with peace and joy and hope, then you might need to spend some time evangelizing you. As one man said, "Don't export what you have to import!" In other words, if you don't have the goods, don't try exporting someone else's experience.

In its simplest form, selling is the transference of passion. One reason so many sales people don't succeed in their profession is due to a lack of passion about what it is they're selling. They need to find their original passion for the product or service they represent (assuming they once had it) or find something they can be passionate about. Anything less is prostitution - knowingly selling an inferior substitute, just to make a buck while perpetuating their quiet desperation.

Evangelism in the marketplace is also about the transference of passion. Passion is a zeal that burns like a fire within your bones and you have to let it out. It's not fabricated, canned or measured. Like fire, it's always looking for an outlet to expand into. From a distance, many are attracted to it. Up close, many are warmed by it. If they get too close, they will catch your fire and so the fire spreads. The first question is, "Is your fire burning brightly enough to attract others to it?"

I often travel to provide business consulting on how to increase the revenue side of business for companies. On one such trip, the Lord had me fly to a small town in a remote farming community. I arrived during a blizzard in which they received 110" of snow. On my first day of consulting, the client invited me to his home, where he had his office. Upon entering his home, I was shocked to find such disorder and chaos. Dog hair was so thick on the carpet; you could barely discern the original color of the carpet. On top of the hair was shredded newspaper that his dog had destroyed over the preceding months. The interior of this house was a shambles. We went into the living room, which doubled as his office and he invited me to sit down. It was so nasty, I remained standing while coming to terms with what I had to do next.

I asked the client if I could speak frankly with him. He insisted that I do, considering what he was paying for me to come out there. I told him his place was a pigsty and there was no sense in me helping him straighten out the mess because it would only return after I left. I explained that the outside mess was a reflection of the mess on the inside of him - unless we dealt with the inner mess, he would always have a mess on the outside. He suggested we leave immediately and go somewhere for breakfast to talk about his "inner mess".

On the way to the car, the Lord dropped a single word in my heart and I knew it was for him so I asked him, "Does the word, 'shame' mean anything to you?" His head slumped to the steering wheel as if an invisible bullet had just hit him and he replied, "I have so much shame!" We spent the rest of that day pulling skeletons out of his closet, then praying together that God would fill those empty, shameful places with His presence. It was quite a remarkable encounter as he poured out his shame to the Lord and received His forgiveness. Later that night, he went by himself to the edge of town and burned the magazines and other paraphernalia that were symbols of the bondage he had been subject to for so long. God had indeed cleaned up the mess on his inside.

The next night he invited me to his local meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous where I met many of his friends. Although I felt very out of place in that remote group of recovering alcoholics, I knew I was on a mission, like Jesus, "to seek and to save that which was lost". I try to never lose sight of the fact, that although I'm in business, I'm always to be about my Father's business and He's in the business of destroying the works of the devil and expanding His influence over the Earth. I usually ask the Father to show me those He has marked out for Himself - my brothers and sisters who, like I was, are looking for the Father but don't know where to find Him. In the process of befriending those who came wrapped in a lot of unattractive baggage, I met Willy (not his real name) at a restaurant my last night in town. He was dining with his wife at the end of a very long day and asked us to join them at their table. Not knowing where he stood with the Father, I decided to speak with him as if he was a brother in the Lord. It's not that I spoke in "Christianeze", but I made no effort to hide the present reality of a risen Christ within me. He was drawn by the fire and wanted more. Though I was leaving the next morning at 7:00 am, he pressed me for an early breakfast meeting at 6:00 am.

The next morning at breakfast I learned about the four or five businesses he ran and we talked shop for about 30 minutes before God got me on His agenda. The Father simply whispered the word, "discontent" to my heart and I asked him if that word meant anything to him. He dropped his head with despair and told me he was very discontent. The Father gave me other insights into this man and as I shared them with him, he was drawn closer and closer to the fire that was burning in me.

God had indeed marked Willy out for Himself and that day was the day when Willy would fly into the fire of His presence and be changed forever! We went to his office and prayed together and God came into him and gave him such a joy! This rugged, rough and tumble kind of individual gave me a bear hug and told me that when he met me the night before, he wanted to jump up and hug me. He had no idea why, but he saw something burning inside me that he knew he desperately needed. He came after me until he was close enough to catch the fire himself.

Some say, "business and religion don't mix, keep your religion to yourself, it has no place in the marketplace." Perhaps in one sense they're right. Perhaps it's not religion they need - It's the fire of God that burns within our soul and is shut up within our bones. If those people aren't coming after you. If they're not being drawn to your light and warmed by your fire, perhaps it's time to stoke the embers and invite God's Spirit to blow upon them, igniting in you the fervor and fire of God like you've never had before. If not you, who? If not now, when?

© Michael Q. Pink, best selling author, speaker and creator of "Selling Among Wolves - Without Joining The Pack!" training programs, is founder of the Strategic Resource Institute, providing Biblical solutions for maximizing the impact of sales and marketing strategies.

For information about free seminars in your area
Michael Q. Pink - SRI
P.O. Box 19888, Sarasota, FL 34276
Phone: (941) 377-9384 www.SellingAmongWolves.com

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