Meet me at the well

If you’ve known me for very long at all, you’ve probably heard me say “coffee shops are the well of today.”

One of my favorite stories in the entire Bible is the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at the well (John 4). I heard a sermon preached on it Mother’s Day 2013 and have preached that same sermon and told the story many times since then. God continues to use this idea of “wells” in my life to remind me that He is the one who provides living water and in Him alone will my soul be satisfied.

It’s ironic because when I first heard that quote at the top and that sermon I hated the taste of coffee, but all of my friends loved it. Through my time on summer project 2013 (shout out to #CBSP13) in an effort to get out of our normal routine, my friends and I would go to coffee shops to spend time with God. It was a tradition that carried on when we went back to school. It became a Saturday morning ritual to find a new place to hide away and spend an extended amount of time praying, reading our Bibles and catching up with each other. To this day, coffee shops are one of my favorite places to go meet with God. Disclaimer – I firmly believe I can experience God ANYwhere and EVERYwhere, coffee houses just happen to be one of my favorite places to do so. Each coffee house/cafe has its own unique story to tell, as do the people in them and I love how God reveals Himself to me over something that starts as a small little bean.

Whether you prefer coffee, tea, espresso, or none of the above, one can hardly deny that people tend to gather around them. I am obsessed with this idea and the fact that so many people are willing to stop for coffee with a friend. Shout out to Portugal where sometimes you drink 5-6 “cafes” a day if it means meeting up with different people!

Much of my summer has been lived in coffee shops. There have been so many cool connections made – some with old friends, others with complete strangers, baristas who feel like they’ve become family (shout out to Liquid State, Jubala, and AWAKE Coffee Community, miss y’all already).

Once again, God has blown me away. I’m in Charlotte today, and decided to go local (Waterbean Coffee) over Starbucks and met two incredible people – a young woman entering into her senior year of college who visited Portugal during her semester of study abroad and a pastor in Charlotte who knew someone involved with International Sports Federation. I am so in awe of how God continues to pour his love out on me through my love of coffee and meeting new people. It’s crazy how three people can have so much in common just because we all believe Jesus Christ as Savior.

We all had different reasons for coming here today (I thought I was coming to get work done) but God had a greater purpose for me – to remind me that He sees me, He knows me and He loves me so much more than I can think or imagine. So often, I go through life stressing out about all of the things on my to do list and I forget to stop and remember the creator and savior of the world is on my team, cheering me on! He is a good, good Father and I am loved by him. All I have to do is cling to the truth of who He is, ask for His help and rest in who He says I am knowing that whatever happens, He is and always will be good.

Don’t forget to take a break from the craziness of life and just enjoy time together (with God and with others). & if you ever want to grab a cup of coffee (whether in the U.S. or in Portugal), don’t hesitate to reach out. I would love to hear your story. If we happen to be in different states or countries, that doesn’t have to stop us. We can always make our own and chat over Skype/FaceTime/etc.