Thought of the Day 11.13.09

Every day, salespeople encounter prospects who raise objections to buying their products. Good salespeople get excited when this happens because they know that objections indicate a desire to buy rather than an aversion to doing so. The person just needs help becoming sure.

See, if he didn’t want the product at all, he wouldn’t bother raising an objection. He’d just say, “No.” Whereas “I’m not interested” is the end of a sales call, “That costs too much” is actually the beginning of one. It’s a vital distinction far too few Christians understand, especially concerning the “problem of evil.”

See, when someone says that a good God wouldn’t allow children to get cancer, we tend to think we’re entering a battle to vanquish an opponent who is our intellectual enemy. Quite the opposite.

Most of the time this person wants very badly to believe in God, but is stymied by the pain of some loss. Far from advocating atheism, he’s actually making a coded request. “Please, sir, I want to make a much deeper purchase of faith. I just need your reassurance that this truly is a wise investment.”