Delta Keeps on Climbing and So Should We
My flight landed in Seattle and taxied to a non-descript place on the runway. It was the middle of September, and I was heading to San Diego on vacation with the family. I had two weeks left in my sabbatical and felt deeply rested. All the passengers exited the plane and were loaded on a bus to take us to the main terminal. It was crowded, the result of a necessary logistics issue related to gate availability. And that’s when it happened.
I noticed a man peering into the crowded bus. He was dressed like a limo driver and he began to call out, “Is there a Mr. David Miles here? Anyone here named David Miles?” Well, he was obviously referring to me. Of course, your anxiety goes up when you are called out so I cautiously moved towards him and said, “I’m Dave Miles.” He nodded and said, “Please come with me.” I followed and he led me to a waiting limousine. Getting in, he said, “Mr. Miles. Welcome to Seattle. You’ve been randomly chosen for priority treatment. Thank you for being a million miler and for your Platinum status with Delta Airlines.”
I was stunned! I had been randomly selected to receive above average hospitable treatment. He drove me to the Delta lounge, and gave me free entrance. This was not the first time I’d been on the receiving end of this kind of hospitality from Delta airlines. On the way off the tarmac, I asked him how one of the largest companies in the world created a culture of kindness and hospitality. He said it started at the top. The CEO is that way. And then it trickles down. “You determine how you want people to treat you, especially if you find yourself in a difficult situation, then treat others the same way even if its costly.” He called it “play it forward.”
Now obviously, Delta airlines is not always perfectly hospitable. It’s a business. They have to make money. And they make mistakes in this regard, some of them quite recent, and quite costly. But my experience with them has caught my attention, especially when I compare it to my experience with other airlines (which shall remain unnamed). It reminded me of our organizational movement towards creating a culture of honor. That particular value was recently added to our stated team culture. We want to create a culture of honor towards anyone who crosses our path.
We want to be kind even when spoken to unkindly. We want to be gracious even when treated rudely. We are in the change business. It’s already hard! So isn’t it the right thing to do to remember the kindness of God towards us so that we can give it to others? Remember, “the riches of His kindness leads us to repentance” (Romans 2:4)!
Let me unpack how I've been thinking about this. In years past I’ve graciously told people, while presenting the results of a diagnostic in large congregational meetings, that some of them needed therapy. People not only applauded, they stood and applauded. It was the first time anyone had ever publicly stated what most people already knew. It was graciously “kind” then. It was graciously honest then. It was perceived as pastoral. It was even celebrated. People thanked me profusely.
It’s not “kind” now. It would not be perceived as anything but offensive now. Let us, as a group of interim pastors, keep in mind the cultural change that have happened in recent years. Cancel culture, name calling, tribalism, and self-righteousness from both the political left and the right have changed things. Go out of your way to be gracious, kind, respectful, tactful, yet truthful in all your dealings with people. Be careful what you say in public or private. Remember, the motivation for being kind to others is God’s kindness towards us as demonstrated in Christ’s work on the cross (Romans 2:4).
If Delta airlines can do this, we can too! Let’s live into a culture of honor by considering the work of the cross, and let’s “play it forward” to the glory of God and the good of others; even towards others who despise us.
