Coming back from the sushi counter at the grocery store, I walked into my hotel lobby and the woman who was at the registration desk when I checked in said, “Hello Mr. Lincoln. Welcome back.”  I couldn’t believe it.  I said, “Thank you.  How did you remember my name?  Have you taken a memory course?”  “No,” she said. “That’s my job.  We want our guests to feel special.”  I did.  She really succeeded.

             Years ago as I was leaving Singapore I stopped a Singapore Airlines flight attendant to ask if my seat was a bulkhead aisle seat so I could change it if it was not.  She said, “Yes, exactly.”  Two hours later I boarded the plane.  Standing by my seat was this attendant who said, “53-B Mr. Lincoln.  Have a nice flight.”  Again, I was deeply impressed.  I don’t expect anyone to know my name in this big, impersonal world, and I’m not the least bit bothered by being just a face in the crowd when I travel.  But when somebody does know my name it really impresses me. 

 True or not our church feels big and is assumed to be impersonal by a lot of people who visit us.  If it turns out to be so because no one reaches out to them when they come, they may be a little disappointed but they are not surprised.  What an opportunity that gives us.  What if, for the next year, nobody could get into our out of our church building without being welcomed warmly, introduced to at least one other church member, and thanked for coming.  Let’s be the most surprisingly friendly church in Columbia starting today.