The Real Thing
In 1969, Coca-Cola changed their slogan to "It’s the Real Thing." I can hear that commercial playing in the back of my head right now. In fact, an ice-cold one in one of those small glass bottles sounds pretty good at the moment.
No. I’ll sip my water and try to wash away that darn commercial.
"It’s the ReAAL Thing!"
Can you hear it now? Hope it’s driving you CRAZY!
OK—let’s talk about The Real Thing.
For most of my life, that slogan never quite fit. All I wanted was to fit in and be one of the guys. Unfortunately, “the guys” often did things that were illegal, unethical, immoral, and incomprehensible.
In 1939, Coca-Cola had a different slogan: "Coke Goes Along." That one described my teenage and early twenty-something years perfectly. I just went along. In the 1980s, they used another one:
"Coke… the Pause that Refreshes."
I had a metal tray with that slogan on it. It was used often—but I found out the pause didn’t really refresh. In fact, it pushed me further from becoming "The Real Thing."
Today, I’m a lot closer. But being—and staying—real takes humility, transparency, authenticity, and daily identity checks. Right now you might be thinking, What’s he talking about?
Well, I’m real some of the time. A people pleaser or poser more of the time. And—if I’m being totally honest—a downright fake at various times.
Why? Two reasons: Acceptance and Love.
I (we) want it. Bad.
Think about it. Has someone ever asked how you're doing and you answered, “GREAT! Couldn’t be better!”—when the truth was the opposite? That’s happened to me more times than I can count. My stomach’s been burning, my head juggling stress balls, and I’ve been thinking:
I need to close more deals…
Generate more calls…
Plan better…
Pay the bills…
Save for college and two weddings…
Ride my bike…
Eat better…
Change the oil…
Unpack more boxes…
Write thank-you notes…
Hug and kiss my wife, tell her I love her and she’s gorgeous…
Tell my daughters they’re beautiful and I’m proud of them…
Feed the dogs and cats (sometimes)…
Do some laundry…
Blah, blah, blah.
WAIT A MINUTE.
NO, I DON’T.
I just need to know I’m deeply loved by God, totally accepted by Him, and that the real me is already made perfect—because Jesus lives in me.
And Jesus is perfect.
Scripture says He sees Jesus in me, so the pressure’s off.
And He tells me not to worry.
(Matthew 6:34 — “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”)
However...
I still need to hug and kiss my wife.
Tell her I love her and she’s gorgeous.
Tell my daughters they’re beautiful and I’m proud of them.
And most importantly…
Keep working on being The Real Thing.
Adios for now,
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