ANSWER THE PHONE!!! (Super Cool Person of the Week!)

Let me begin with this—and this is a personal pet peeve—but if you are a pastor and your church has one of those stupid, impersonal phone systems that say, “If you would like to speak to so & so then press one…” then you need to apologize to God for being stupid and get rid of that system today.

Yep, I said stupid—no need to reread. Why would I risk offending you? Because you actually believe that people calling your church WANT to go through the most difficult route possible to reach someone…because you believe people actually have time that they want to waste listening to the options…because you actually believe that what is more convenient for you trumps what is more convenient for the people trying to contact your church…and that is just flat out stupid!!! If I call a business and get a recording I usually hang up and look for another business where I can speak with a person…and the same could be said of the church.

Now on to my super cool person of the week…

PLEASE get this—there is no such thing as an unimportant person OR an unimportant job! No matter who you are you matter to God and what you do matters to the kingdom. One of the traps that the enemy tries to cause all of us to fall into is the one where we think that we are not important…and we never will be.

I covered this with a young lady yesterday during a job interview. In telling her about how it is to work at our church I was very direct in saying, “There are no unimportant jobs around here, whether someone is a staff member or a volunteer—everything that happens in this church matters—everything.” I never want an atmosphere where it is the senior pastor and then “all the other little, insignificant people.” I realize that those closest to you will determine your level of success…and I would be NOTHING without the favor of God AND the benefit of the most awesome staff and volunteers on the planet!

And everyone on our team matters. The person I want to point out today is Lindsay Owens…she is my super cool person of the week. If you have ever called our office then chances are that you have spoken to her…and if you have ever dropped by our office then chances are you have seen her, you see, she is the receptionist at New Spring…and in my opinion there is not a more important job in the church.

Many churches overlook the importance of this role and just throw anyone in that position…and that is sad because I have spoken to some of the rudest and most cruel individuals when calling churches. Hint—if there is a person who hates the world—don’t let them answer phones for your church! People don’t want to speak to people who are “saved and mad about it!”

When it comes to church receptionists…I would say there is not one on the planet better than Lindsay. I realized this once when I was in the gym and a mail worker told me, “I really do like coming by your office man…that girl that sits up front and answers the phones is always so nice…she smiles all the time and I always am cheered up when I leave.” Wow—what a testimony to our church and to Lindsay.

If you are a pastor then remember this—the first impression that many people will ever have of your church will not be the result of meeting you…but rather in speaking with or seeing your receptionist. They will begin to develop their opinion of your ministry based on her actions and her attitude—so when it comes to this position—put some time and thought into it.

As the senior pastor—I have full confidence that there is not a more qualified person in the world for the job than Lindsay. She knows that what she is doing matters to the kingdom. I often tell her that I feel that what she is doing is one of the most important things in the world. Think about it—and I have said it already—she makes the first impression on hundreds of people…and she rocks.

One of the other things I admire about Lindsay is that she doesn’t just sit and answer phones all day long…but she goes the extra mile. She is constantly asking others about ways she can help them. She hardly ever says “no” or comes up with lame excuses when asked to do something. She does not say things such as, “Uh, sorry—that’s not in my job description.” She is willing to do whatever it takes whenever it is needed…and our church AND the kingdom is growing because of her amazing efforts each and every day.