A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to work at a food truck! Yep, and I smelled very strongly of fried food when the weekend was over. 🙂 There is a downtown street fair in my town in the fall, and I had a great time working in the cheese curd/funnel cake/lemonade food truck for two days with my cousin. I was honestly pretty terrified going into it, but I quickly relaxed. It was a great learning experience, and I wanted to take a minute to recap a few things that I learned.

1. Counting back change really isn’t that scary

Okay, honestly that’s the part that I was terrified of. Math is not my favorite subject, and I’m not always super fast at my math facts. However, counting back change really wasn’t that bad. The people were very forgiving of any mistakes, and it was actually pretty easy to do it the way that the workers in the truck did it. So, don’t be terrified of counting back change! 😉

2. Teamwork is essential

I never understood how food trucks and concessions stands are so busy, but food trucks are really busy!! People are ordering food really quickly, and all of the workers need to be alert and quick as they’re rushing about. Someone’s at the window taking orders and giving back change; someone’s dishing out the cheese curds and putting toppings on funnel cakes; someone’s making lemonade; someone’s frying cheese curds, and someone else is frying funnel cakes. And in a tiny food truck, we need to be careful where we step! 🙂

Because we were so busy, all of us workers needed to work together, letting each other know when we needed more supplies, when we needed more cheese curds, funnel cakes, or lemonade, or when we needed help with something. It reminded me that I could be an example of how Jesus wants me to live whether I was interacting with customers, dishing out food, or talking to the other workers.

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

-Colossians 3:23-24

3. Mistakes happen

And when I did make a mistake, it was okay. It wasn’t the end of the world, even though I sometimes felt pretty embarrassed. I felt very blessed that the people I served were, for the most part, very kind and forgiving and that the people I worked for were helpful and gracious.

4. Be kind

Wherever you work, you’ll encounter many different kinds of people. Some will be friendly, and some won’t. Whatever the situation, showing kindness to everyone, whether it’s your customers or your fellow workers, is a demonstration of the love and grace of God. When we show kindness to people, they can see the love of God that we have received, and because of God’s love for us, we can love whoever comes into our lives, even if we only have a brief encounter. Witnessing can take many forms, and even just showing kindness can plant a seed in someone’s heart that may grow later on.

“‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”‘

-Jesus, John 13:34-35

5. People need Jesus

Without sounding too weird, it was really interesting to people-watch from the food truck. I saw so many different kinds of people. It made me wonder things like, I wonder why they’re acting that way, or I wonder why they‘re wearing that, or I wonder what’s going on in their lives. As a Christian, I know that my job is to tell others about the Gospel. For some of the people I saw, my heart ached, and I wished that I could tell them of the hope, grace, and redeeming love found in Jesus. It also reminded me that wherever I am, there might be an opportunity to tell someone about Jesus. People are hungry for the hope found in Jesus, and we can be lights in their darkness, beacons of hope and joy in a world full of pain and strife.

“‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”‘

-Jesus, Matthew 28: 19-20

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These are a few of the things that I took away from my work experience in a food truck! I had a fantastic time, and some of the things that I did reminded me of the importance of always living for Christ and striving to act more and more like Him every minute of every day.

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What did you think of this post? Have you worked in any unique places? What things remind you to live for Christ? Let me know in the comments!