"I'm sorry, I forgot your name."

     How do you handle this dilemma?  The most honest and forward way to do so would be to say, "I'm sorry, I forgot your name."  It's not what we do though.  That may be what we do as a last resort.  Sometimes we forget the name of someone very close to us.  More often it's an acquaintance or a friend who is the brunt of our mental lapse.  Dealing with this problem can be educational and refreshing or the honesty can be embarrassing.  Mine falls into the later category.
     We don't like how people forget our name.  That alone should provide the impetus for us to work on remembering theirs.  The truth is, we only remember that which is important to us.  Sure, everything goes into our brain but not everything has a bookmark!  We can excuse others for not remembering our name and often do.  Sometimes though, our minds are elsewhere and, like me, we forget the name of our wife.  Worse yet, we call them by our ex wife's name!  Now not remembering has become quite a problem. 
     Then there is the all encompassing general response to our forgetfulness.  "Hey, what have you been up to?"  Just who is "Hey!"?  Hey is our favorite person in the whole world.  Hey is related to "Hey you. How are you doing?"  It's followed by "You know,..." and then "Whatshisname..."  You can hear the toilet flushing as we give up on remembering.  I once read a book on remembering things from peoples names to citations from various books and seminars.  You know what happened!  Yep, I forget anyway. 
     We ask others what someone's name is as a means of escaping the embarrassing moment.  The quick look at the name tag or the inquiry to our companion for the event is next.  We even eavesdrop on conversations in order to hear the persons name.  When we do finally come to the end of our excuses, we face the music or leave the event.  Often avoidance is the only choice in our mind when we forget someone's name.  We're trying so hard to remember that we cannot.
     There are billions of people on the earth.  Many of them I do not know.  Yet, God knows each one.  He remembers us by name.  How can that be?  In the Psalm we read that "Knit us together in our mother's womb." Then in Revelation we are told that "He will give a new name to those who overcome."  I believe that the two are connected.  I believe that the name he gave us when created is the name that is bestowed upon us when we enter into heaven and His presence. 
     Instead of "I'm sorry, I forgot your name." those who enter heaven will hear "Steve!  Well done thou good and faithful servant!"  WOW!  You won't hear me saying "I'm sorry, I forgot your name."  We remember what is most important at any given time.  Remembering and recalling are two different things.  We call that which we have remembered.  We remember their names but don't have the present ability to recall them.  So, the best choice is to just be honest and ask.  We're not God you know!