Costly Coffee

One of the challenges of parenting is the sheer amount of time it requires.  There are many tasks to complete in 24 hours.  I enjoy the demands of parenting but some days, I miss my friends.  A woman I don’t see enough is a radical disciple of Jesus who I’ll call Jess.  Jess is a five foot three-ish tiny blonde wonder.  She maintains four children, two households, one husband and is the bookkeeper for the family business.  Yet she is the type of woman who wouldn't blink if I suddenly dropped in for lunch unannounced with five extra guests.  She would look up and say, ”Karen, I’m so glad you are here!” while she set to adding peanut butter and jam sandwiches to whatever she was serving.

I fell in love with her while looking through her tea stash (an entire drawer filled with black teas, no chamomile anywhere), but decided she had to be my friend when we had a conversation about suffering.  I was having a bad day and found myself in her home, sipping tea and eating a seemingly endless supply of banana chips. 

After explaining the faith challenges before me, she started to recount the trials facing the persecuted church.  Then she brought out almonds and chocolate while she proceeded to list off biblical characters who faced overwhelming hardship.  The entire afternoon was cozy, surreal and refreshing.  It was the first time I had shared my pain only to be asked if I was blessed by indoor plumbing.  I knew at that instant, she was a treasure.

The fact that Jess gets anywhere on time is a miracle.  This particular Wednesday, she found herself distracted as she managed to get her children buckled into the car.  Bible study was the destination, but there was time to stop and grab coffee before class.  I’m not clear what had my friend so preoccupied that morning, but as a result, she raced into an unfamiliar coffee stand to get her drink.

Had Jess being driving slower, she might have noticed the sign lining the driveway.  Let me state, that bikini barista is a misnomer in the coffee business, like the terms guinea pig or king crab.  The woman work these stands don’t always wear bikinis.  You can imagine then, how surprised Jess was, to find an almost naked woman asking her what type of coffee she wanted.

Did I mention Jess was on her way to bible study?

When she had picked her eyeballs off the floor, Jess decided that acting casual was the best way to deal with the encounter.  She calmly placed her order and prayed very, very, very hard that her children would remain oblivious to their surroundings.  Her plan was working pretty well until her four year old boy looked up, caught sight of the server and started screaming.  In his defense, his mother had never purchased coffee from a bare naked person before.  Determined to remain calm Jess shouted, “Boys stop!! Put your faces in your chairs and I’ll tell you when you can lift them!!!”  She thanked her mostly naked server, concluded her purchase, drove off and started explaining. 

I thought the whole misadventure was a pretty remarkable picture of how things can go sideways.

Sometimes sin catches us by surprise and we find ourselves in a distressing situation, unsure how to cope.  Because we dislike making a scene, we tough out situation when we should flee.  Then the screaming starts….

Now the works of the flesh are evident:  sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealously, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.  I warn you, as I warned you before that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  Gal 5 19-21.

Friend, before the holiday season begins, can I challenge you to do something different? Sit down and examine your heart.  What sins have you been fighting against his year?   Ask the Lord for the gift of repentance but don’t stop there.  To forsake something means to renounce or give up something valued or pleasant.  Ask God to give you the grace to forsake the sin that is hindering you.  Break up with it entirely.  If surfing the web leads to porn, take up reading books.  If talking on the phone with a specific friend leads to gossip, send an email instead.  Let’s not waste one more minute with activities that lead us to places of shame.  With God’s grace, let us enter this holiday season with hearts ready to celebrate the coming of our King.

Jess would be the first person to tell you, for the price you pay, the coffee isn’t worth it.

Praying for you this week.

xoxK