Have you ever done something that caused people to laugh at you? Did you laugh with them? Or did you get offended?
I’ve done some funny, bone-headed things over the years. Here are 3 of them.
Case #1: When I was just a 18-year-old kid, I was invited to speak at a youth conference. I spent many hours preparing my sermon. I put my sermon notes in a brown binder.
I drove a few hours to the church where the conference was being held.
I was fired up and ready to share the “amazing sermon” I had prepared. When it was time, I walked to the pulpit. I opened my notebook…and my heart skipped a beat or two. I had brought the wrong notebook. The “amazing sermon” I had prepared was nowhere to be seen.
I stuttered and stammered around for a few minutes and then woefully apologized to the audience for my mistake and gave up trying to share any more. It was very embarrassing to say the least. The people in the audience gave me some grace, but I am sure they were laughing and thinking “what a bonehead.”
Case #2: I was speaking in the weekend services at a church in the Tampa Bay area. The church has one service on Saturday and two on Sunday. I had just finished speaking at the first service on Sunday and was interacting with some of the people who had attended. A lady approached me and whispered to me, “I need to tell you something.”
Okay. I thought she might be getting ready to tell me about something going on in her life, ask a question or comment on something I said during the message. But here’s what she said.
“You still have the sales tag on your coat.”
“Where?” I said.
“Under your arm. I saw it when you were speaking.”
My heart skipped a beat. I raised my arm and sure enough…there was the sales tag. I had spoke Saturday night and Sunday morning with a sales tag hanging out of my coat! I felt like an idiot! I thanked her and obviously quickly removed the tag. I was so embarrassed.
