I just received a nice gift from Fox Sports!

I just got a present from Fox Sports, Pittsburgh.

I called them back before Christmas to complain that the Pens game wasn’t in HD. As I waited to talk to someone, I realized that what I was doing wasn’t very Christmasy. And I figured that whoever I would talk to at the station probably hears gripe like this from fans all the time.

So instead of complaining, when she answered the phone, I said, “Thanks — thanks for putting the Pens games on. Merry Christmas.”

She said “WOW — no one ever did that before!”

Three weeks later she called me. “Is this the guy who called to say thanks before Christmas? I got your number from caller-id and jotted it down that day. Today I found it on a post-it note in the clutter on my desk and I would like to have your mailing address.”

Today, UPS dropped off a box with a gift bag containing…

  • A new Pens cap.
  • An FSN hat.
  • A Pens / FSN shirt.
  • A Pens / FSN keychain / bottle opener.
  • And a note that said: “Hi Steve — just a little something to say ‘thank you’ … for your ‘thank you’ call! It was very appreciated and put a smile on my face!”

And guess what? I think almost every game I’ve watched since them on FSN has been in HD. That’s so cool.

If this was a story in a sermon, what would the point of the story be?

The Essence of True Faith…

“Believing in him is not the same as believing things about him such as that he was born of a virgin and raised Lazarus from the dead. Instead, it is a matter of giving our hearts to him, of come hell or high water putting our money on him, the way a child believes in a mother or a father, the way a mother or a father believes in a child.” ~Frederick Buechner