His name is Dan.

Dan was our server last Friday when we ate the River City Café in Surfside Beach. He did a good job. During our conversation I learned he moved from New York last summer and this was his second summer working at the restaurant. He spent the last year teaching math at a local middle school, but that was a one year job being held for a teacher who had taken a year off. He was interviewing for new teaching positions, but indicated the competition is tough. He told me he loves teaching, but struggles in interviews.

During our conversation, I told him our son had married a girl from Long Island and that I was Pastor of FBC in Rock Hill. We discussed New York…NY is much more than the city…and I mentioned that we were planting a church in Rochester, NY.

All of this conversation occurred over two brief moments at our outside table overlooking the ocean. I mentioned I would pray for his job search and an appreciative smile covered his face as said, “thank you.”

I’ve learned there are times when it’s easy to have conversations with people and if you are interested in them and their needs, they’ll talk with you. I’ve also learned that most people appreciate a prayer and it’s not something that happens often in their life. My hope is that our simple conversation planted a positive thought in Dan’s mind about God…and God’s people.

Being nice to people is never a bad thing. People need it because there are a lot of jerks in this world and those who work with the public know this better than most.

Being a positive witness for our Lord is a great thing and there are simple ways to do it. I have prayed for Dan and I encourage you to pray for him right now.

One last thing: if you do something that lets your server know you’re a believer (like praying before you eat or having a spiritual conversation), make sure you leave a generous tip. Being stingy destroys your witness. Whenever I have these kinds of conversations, I leave a tip of 20%. I want them to know that God’s people are the best people on the planet.

Pastor Steve Hogg