Derrick Logan

Back in July, Kim and I spent in a week in Durango, CO leading worship for Palm Valley's summer high school camp. As we headed home, we hit a run of road construction that actually had us at a stand still for about 20 minutes. While driving through that construction, we drove over a stretch of very loose gravel for about two miles. At some point, as the tiny rocks were kicking the underbelly of my SUV, one of those little boogers lodged itself in one of my wheels. I would’ve never guessed that such a tiny object could cause such an awful noise. We noticed the sound once we got into town and promptly called On-Star to locate the nearest GM dealer. Kim and I both drive Saturn vehicles (a GM make); I drive a Vue and she drives an Outlook. We took the Outlook on the trip since it’s roomier. On-Star helped us locate the nearest Chevy dealer just a few miles away. Every car and pedestrian within an ear shot stared at every stop light on the way there, it was that loud. I pulled up to the Chevy service station and walked in to get some help.

They wouldn’t help me. At all. Under any circumstance… even one that involves a family w/ a young child trying to get home to another state. First off, they’re not certified to do work on Saturn’s under warranty. Yes, you heard right; the company that makes my vehicles doesn’t certify their own employees to service them. To have a certified mechanic service my vehicle, I would have to take it to a Saturn dealership. Since there isn’t a Saturn dealership in Durango, GM is telling their Saturn customers that they’re screwed if they live there… or travel through there, as in this case. Thanks GM. [sarcastic thumbs up] Secondly, the Chevy service department manager was a jerk and did everything she could to wash her hands of me.

There was another GM dealer across the street… which serviced every GM make… except Saturn. Fortunately, these guys were a little more understanding, worked us in very quickly, and were very understanding and courteous. They told me upfront that they weren’t certified to work on my vehicle but they offered to take a look at it and see if it was something simple. It was, so they took care of it for a small service charge. While our vehicle was being serviced, we were updated frequently as to the status and what they were doing to the car. They were very sensitive to our situation and eager to help us.

I realized that Christian churches suffer the same dilemma. There’s very little consistency from church to church. How confusing and disheartening it must be for a new follower or seeker to find a new church after they’ve moved to a new city. We’ll never see a perfectly unified church around the world or find a certified Saturn mechanic at another GM dealership. But we can be that other GM dealer across the street; by meeting the real needs of real people that come in our doors. At Palm Valley, a mantra that’s heard often is “where people matter." If people are our priority, we can know that we’re being that other dealership. We might not be able to change the world but we can change our world… and just maybe it’ll rub off on others.