Ministry Lesson #2 & 3

Lesson #2

If you work at a church, you are expected to pray.

No, I don’t mean what you think I mean.  I mean you are expected to pray the Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner prayer.  Really?  They do know that I don’t actually preach on Sunday’s right?  We all circled around and held hands and it was announced that I should pray.  I said sure and prayed and then filled my plate.  Things were really looking up until I asked which one was my seat and found out I was still at the kids table.  28 years later and I am still at the kids table.  I thought the person that blesses the food sits at the head of the table!

Lesson #3

Learn people’s names.

It’s a practice everyone should learn, but it’s something I struggle with.  It really hit home when one Sunday a group of my friends were standing around and I wanted to say hello to someone but couldn’t remember their name.  So I asked a friend and she looked at me and said, “Wes, you know you have hurt people’s feelings by not remembering their name.”  That hit me like a ton of bricks, but it’s true.  You can make someone feel 2 feet tall by not remembering something as simple as their name.

I remember a friend telling me a story about Bill Clinton.  A friend of his met him late one night at a restaurant bar.  They had a drink together and talked for about 30 minutes.  A few years passed and he actually ran into the ex-President again and before he could say hello, Bill Clinton called him out by name to see how he’s been.  Unreal.

Calling someone by their name instantly gives your message credibility.  It makes you more approachable and it shows respect.  After that day, I went and searched for tips on remembering people’s names and have tried ever since to be more aware of remembering names and faces.  It’s definitely taking some practice.