Have you noticed that most people provide very poor customer service? In fact, they don't have any.

It is not my general attitude to provide specific comments concerning individuals or stores -- just does not strike my spirit as the proper attitude, no matter what happens.

On the other hand, we need to help each other out.  For years I have purchased my glasses at one particular LensCrafters store.  Yesterday I neatly rolled over onto my glasses and snapped one of the side pieces. So much for those frames! 

So, we went to the store.  The most positive comment made by the sales assistant was that my frame was broken. He did take the time to look to see if they had the frame in stock.  Of course, no such luck. What bothered me was that was the end of the service.  He suggested the frame could be temporarily taped.  He did not offer to sell me new frames. He did not suggest the lens would fit into a different frame. He did, well, nothing.

Now such an attitude does not make you feel very confident in the store nor does it make you feel good as a person. Life is not about feeling good, but life does depend upon one treating others properly. This I did not receive and I was upset.

My wife thinks analytically while in the middle of issues, even if the emotions may catch up with her later. Her response was to try the competitor at the other end of the mall. So we walked down to Sterling Optical. Years ago I had purchased a pair of glasses there.  They fell apart almost immediately and never stayed together very well.  I learned later the company had been in bankruptcy and this showed in product and service.  Not so this time around. My wife's views were correct.

After showing the clerk my glasses, she promptly measured the lenses then walked around the store physically inspecting the displayes to find possible matches.  She ultimately provided two or three choices. The lenses needed to be cut down slightly to fit the frames.  She explained all of this, showed us where the cuts would be. There was a charge, of course, for the frames, but no charge for the extra work or cutting the lenses to fit.  That is the way it should work.  Try to help the other peson.

I recognize that all of these national stores operate at two levels. The national management sets the rules and teaches the local stores how to operate, but in the end, it is up to the guy next door who is the sales assistant to translate all of this teahcing into action.  In my cases, there was an obvious failure at one location, but not at the other.

Have you noticed this is the way Christianity works? Jesus came to earth and via His Words and actions taught us how to live our lives. We learned the need for a relationship with God (we are sinners), the way to establish that relationship (faith/grace), and how to live once we have found God (that process we call sanctification). It all comes down to how well we carry out the teachings in our lives. 

The next customer we encounter, that is the next unsaved person we deal with, will measure Chrsitianity not by the words of the Bible or by Jesus but by how well the local clerk, you, carryout the concepts. If you love your neighbor in a meaningful fashion, Christianity will look good to this unbeliever. If, on the other hand, you fail at your task, the unbeliever will find no reason to try the Christian faith.

It is all on your shoulders, at least right that moment.  Do what is right and proper and good. Don't sluff it off and suggest that the broken frame can be repaired with tape. It leaves a bad impression.

Jim A