What is it about going out to eat that we get so excited about? Seriously, don’t you get excited when you are going out to eat and you know that someone else will have to get whatever it is that you want when you want it? I know for me I get excited.

I live in a house with three boys and a beautiful wife who is a great cook and does a wonderful job. However, with three boys sitting down for dinner seems to be a rat race of do we have everything that we need on the table. Without fault I will sit down and all of a sudden it is time to get up and take care of a child’s needs. So, when we go out to eat I always push for a sit down restaurant where someone else will have to take care of me and my family.

In Youth Ministry there are those times where we are hosting a dinner or banquet and I am not sure that we know have paid much attention to those who have waited on us at restaurants. So, I have put together a list of things that we need to do when hosting a dinner or luncheon.

Providing Customer Service:

1. Don’t sit down - constantly walk around the room greeting everyone and having conversation about what is happening in their lives. Sitting down does two things in a groups setting like this: it disconnects you from everyone in the room excepts those at your table, you are no longer hosting.

2. Care for their needs - you do not get the chance to serve your people in this manner very often. So take advantage of what you have been teaching and get them refills or extra butter. Simply let them know that you are there to take care of their needs.

3. Eating is optional - i have found that when I am serving the people that I have invited I usually do not get to eat until after the program has started. If I am leading the program then I don’t eat until everything is over.

4. You clean, send them home - we all have great leaders and too often we take advantage of this after we have worked to prepare a night of encouragement or recognition. Tear down starts as soon as we have dismissed. Take some time to say good bye and let your guests go. When was the last time that you cleared your table when you went out to eat?

These are some simple ways that I think we can really communicate fully to our leaders or those that we are hosting that we care. Honestly, as leaders we do not serve our people enough and to take a back seat once in a while is not a bad thing and will be an encouragement to those you are hosting.