Jose’s portable beachside mercado in the Dominican Republic was overflowing with one-legged pink flamingos, hand painted maracas (“you no buy, you no shake”), and a framed velvet Elvis or two; just the kind of high quality merchandise to tempt even the choosiest vacationing American. Jose was nice enough to stop me and point out his selection of genuine Cuban cigars. “You pay three hundred,” he says, “but I give you at one twenty five.” A steal of a deal, I thought, after using my high school Spanish to wrestle him down to only $50 per box.

Back in the good ole USA my friend Mike opened his new box of cigars and immediately sensed something was wrong. The cigar paper was wrapped haphazardly. The aroma was dull. A strand of straw was sticking out the end of one.

I had been had. Como se dice “ripped off”?

Had I sought counsel from someone experienced in buying cigars I would have been saved from making a rather simple mistake. But because I don’t smoke and had never purchased cigars before I lacked basic understanding of what to look for, or even what questions to ask. My inexperience led me to make assumptions, and those assumptions left me vulnerable to Jose’s beachside salesmanship.

What assumptions do you make about your listeners? If you want your station to grow what assumptions do you make of those tuning in for the first time?

Do you assume they know the music and have a favorite artist? Do you assume that they know the secret handshake, understand the lingo, and want a four-pack of tickets to the show?

“To move and audience, especially a diverse audience, from where they are to where you want them to be requires common ground. If you want me to follow you on a journey, you have to come get me. The journey must begin where I am, not where you are or where you think I should be.

…If the journey begins with the assumption that everybody here knows what we are doing, you will eventually have an audience of people who already know what you are doing. If your journey begins with the assumption that everybody in the audience is a believer, then eventually your audience will be full of believers. Who shows up for Third Day concerts? Primarily people who know and are expecting Third Day music.

Where you consistently begin and what you consistently assume determine who consistently shows up. Why? Because your assumptions create the common ground for the journey.” Andy Stanley, “Deep and Wide”

Now, about that velvet Elvis…

I hadn’t brushed my teeth with tap water in a week.  There’s nothing like being in a third world country to make one aware of the blessings we have in the good ole’ U.S.A.

I was one of 50 to recently travel to the Dominican Republic to lift shovel and rock to build a community center, to tend to 308 Dominicans and Haitians in a make-shift medical clinic, and to use the common language of sports to build bridges to hundreds of kids that couldn’t speak English.

My friend Christian Santiago is El Hombre in an organization God is using to transform a poverty-stricken Dominican community.  That organization’s focus to their vision – to educate and develop leaders in their own community to share the Gospel – has allowed them to avoid the pitfalls of trying to do too many things that take away time and resources from the main thing.  The result?  A thriving ministry!

As you can imagine, a benevolent organization like theirs, and maybe a radio station like yours, is bombarded with random, sometimes cock-eyed ideas from well-intended bystanders.  A Saturday night rock show for the teens? A Sunday night Southern Gospel show?  How ’bout some children’s programming?

Christian has a very simple way of filtering out the clutter.   Every suggestion comes with a donation.  He’s learned it’s easy for someone to throw out a random idea, but the meaningful ones come from those who are willing to back it up.

I’m not suggesting that your station’s strategy should be dictated by those on the sidelines with deep pockets.   But it is helpful to have an objective filter to help discern the good ideas from ones that will simply eat up your time and resources.

It’s been said that if you can’t say ‘no’ to the things that don’t matter then you won’t have room to say ‘yes’ to the things that do.

I couldn’t believe what I heard the public address announcer say.

The game was still going on, there were fans still in the ballpark, but they were closing the concession stands!

What’s next, I thought? The restrooms will close in the 8th?

It begins ever so subtly. First, the restaurant limits its hours. Then it’s closed for lunch. Then it’s only open four days a week.

It’s a slippery slope when you start treating your customers like they are not important enough for you to stay open.

Which daypart do you treat like “no one is listening”? Overnights?

I know stations that have more listeners overnights than others have during the entire week.

Sunday morning?

That may be your greatest opportunity to connect with someone listening for the first time on the way to church.

Saturday night?

Andy Stanley’s ministry strategically buys television time immediately following Saturday Night Live because they want to reach people on the way home from the bars. At last check Your Move is viewed by over 700,000 people, more than but two Christian radio stations in America.

Legendary New York Yankee outfielder Joe DiMaggio was once asked why he hustled on plays that had little effect on a game’s outcome or on his team’s standing. Joe replied,

Because there’s always some kid who may be seeing me for the first time. I owe him my best.

Once you stop caring whether anyone is listening, don’t be surprised if others do, too.

239 years ago our country was born with a Declaration of Independence, and a subsequent Bill of Rights for all citizens to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But as Believers, we know that with rights comes responsibility.

Your radio station has the right to do anything you want within the parameters of certain legal, broadcasting, and financial regulations. You even have the right to be mediocre. Most Christian stations are just that.

But with every right comes a responsibility.

Yes, your station has the right to be just barely good enough to stay on the air, be just solvent enough to keep the lights on, and just legal enough to keep from having your license taken away. Yes, those are your rights. I challenge you, what are your responsibilities!

What if your station, instead of embracing the minimum, embraced the responsibility of setting the standard of excellence?

What if your station, instead of embracing the minimum, accepted the responsibility of unifying a community of believers?

What if your station, instead of embracing the minimum, accepted the responsibility of reaching out and meeting the needs of your listeners, and their neighbors, and their neighbors?

No church, no civic organization, no governmental agency in your city has the bullhorn to impact your community the way that your station does.

On this 4th of July weekend, let’s wave our flags, shoot off our fireworks, and sing our patriotic songs.

But let us not forget our responsibilities.

Inspired by Andy Stanley’s message “Younited States of America”, one of the most amazing talks I’ve ever heard.