What is your name?

One of the simplest yet most powerful questions we can ask those we meet in our new language is, "What is your name?" It's just incredible how that one question can open so many doors of conversation, relationship, and ministry!

A lot of us (myself included) have to work hard at doing this consistently. Asking a simple question may sound easy enough, but we so often get into routines with people and not really meeting them or knowing them. This can especially be true for those of us living in "colder" cultures where meeting and greeting may be less common or public. But, guess what? Everyone, no matter the culture, longs to be known!

Asking someone, "What is your name?" is never just small talk. It's meaningful, and communicates value and dignity, with the potential to open doors to the gospel. Asking, "What is your name?" may just be the first step in getting to know that next person God brings into our lives.  What could happen when we learn someone's name?

Remember how much Jesus our Good Shepherd loves us. We are his sheep, he knows each of us by name, and we know him. He calls us and leads us out, and we follow him (John 10:3-4,14). In the parable of the Lost Sheep, Jesus shows how much he loves us as his own, that he even seeks those who are lost until he finds them. And when he finds them he rejoices! (Luke 15:3-7) This includes our lost neighbors!

On a recent visit, my pastor (without exception!) asked everyone we encountered, "What is your name?" I'm sad to say many of these encounters were with people I had thought I "met" but yet didn't even know their name. That changed. I began to make Mike's practice my own. Just this one little tweak has literally changed how I interact with people. It's prompted me to pray more for people, by name. It's given me a sense of readiness and expectation, "Lord, who will you introduce me to, today?"

On our first day together at the B&B Mike engaged the owner, "Tell me your name?" and he just opened up. It was so beautiful to witness! At the end of the week on our way back we circled back to the same town for dinner. And who did we meet on the street? The owner of the B&B! Theodore was as excited as we were, and we all understood God had set this up! This all started with Mike asking, "What is your name?"

A few things for us to think about:

1. We encounter lost people everyday. Do we know their names?

   
   

2. What needs to change so that we don't pass them by without stopping to ask, "What is your name?"

   
   

3. And that knowing someone's name is a great first step (maybe THE first step) to loving them to Jesus with the gospel.

   
   

Friends, thank you again for joining me on this "gospel fluency" journey. I am making two of my books available on Amazon for free Kindle download through February 1st which you can find at the links below: