Daily Power #286

Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. (1 Peter 3:8)

One Sunday after church, I was greeting people in the lobby. This young girl came walking slowly toward me. From her body language, I could tell that she was struggling. Her head hung low, shoulders slumped. She looked like she was carrying the weight of the world.

Since I meet a lot of people at church, it’s not easy to learn all their names. It’s important to me, but I wish I were better at remembering. I had only talked to this girl one time before so I scrambled to try and remember her name. “Melanie!” I blurted out, praying I had it right. “I’m so glad to see you!”

She stopped in her tracks. Oh, no! Did I get it right? Did I miss it horribly?

Then her face lit up with gratitude. “How did you remember my name?”

As we chatted, she eventually explained her current struggle. After losing her mom, dropping out of school, and being betrayed by her best friend, she wondered why she should keep living.

But the fact that I called her by name apparently made a difference. I explained to her that God knows her name and he cares about her more than she could ever imagine. She listened, hanging on every word, and I could tell she believed it. I made sure to follow up with her.

Make it a goal today to call everyone by their name. You’ll be surprised what a difference it can make.

Power Lift

Lord, you call me by name, and I want to do the same with others today. Help me to focus on seeing them with my heart and not just my eyes.