Proselytizing is like spam

Proselytizing, in my view, is like spam. Ringing a doorbell, standing at a bus stop, buying a billboard… those are not permission-based activities. On the other hand, delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to people who want to get them… that works, and it always has, and it’s working better than ever. I think that sharing ideas with people who want to hear them is the essence of what it means to be a marketer, and being a good person makes this a lot easier. – Seth Godin via Church Marketing Sucks

While I didn’t spell this out verbatim in St. Peter’s Brewery, it was one of the ideas that I hope came across in reading the novel.

Far too long we’ve let street preachers and tracts do our work, when what they really want to see is our lives. They want to see our faith being made relevant to our lives, as well as to theirs. And then give them the space of grace (sanctuary) for that to happen so they can respond on their own time — without the heavy handed sales pitch from others.

(Photo by Coba)