He was a master of personal connection. It was so important to Him that there is no account of Him writing letters or notes to His teammates or recruits. It was all done face-to-face. In fact, in the Bible, I only found one place where Jesus wrote at all, and that was when confronting a crowd of men who were claiming they caught a woman in adultery and preparing to stone her. Even then, it doesn't say what he wrote, although I imagine it was either "creeps" or just a line in the sand and daring them to cross it.
It was all face-to-face, mano y mano, in-person encounters. He knew the power of connection and communication was so much stronger with a personal encounter than any other form. Jesus wanted to get face-to-face, and from there, his light would shine bright. So will yours.
So why do we think sending an email is better than having a conversation? Sure, it's efficient and creates a record of things, but if you want to truly impact behavior, influence people, and build a relationship, you have to get face-to-face with people, even if over video call. It just can't be beat.
"And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no light there- no need for lamps or sun- for the Lord God will shine on them." (Revelation 22:4-5)
I was in a conversation last week with an excellent leader, and they shared with me that they miss seeing their clients. Too much is done over text and email, and rarely in person. They went on to say how much more effective they were at conversion when meeting at the office or over video call. What are the odds that if they pull off a shift in their personal meetings, their business will increase? Pretty good, I would say.
I have been in countless discussions where a person is complaining that people aren't listening or responding, and things aren't happening the way they want. I ask them what they have been doing, and I get a version of "I've sent out a bunch of emails on the matter". Well then, you got back what you put in. Newsflash...people don't have to read your emails. If it is not important to them in the moment, it's not going to get read...and reading it later rarely comes.
If you want to influence people, you have to connect with them.
If you want to influence people, you have to connect with them. If you want to connect with them, you have to engage personally. Skipping that step is a conversion killer. Email is great for a bulletin, but if you want to influence someone or change a behavior, start with yours. Do not neglect to meet together.
Imagine if Jesus hung out in the safety of his tent and sent emails or texts all day. Nope, he has to rub a little dirt on the eyes, let his robe be touched, breathe life into people, intercede for the abused, wash some feet, throw a little shade, a lot more love, and carry his own cross. And at the end of it all, stare you and me in the face as he breathed His last and invited us to paradise.
Connect, Inspire, Challenge, Influence. Face to face. That's how Jesus did it, and I would say He influenced a few behaviors and had a pretty solid conversion rate.
