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Thursday, January 12, 2012

The Little Things and Coffee

I want to start by wishing everyone a Happy New Year as we begin 2012! I am excited to get back to writing new blog entries after taking a few weeks off for the Christmas holiday. My Blog has reached 1000 reads so thank you all so much for taking the time to read and comment on my posts!

6AM Thursday morning I awake to the screams of my rooster alarm going off. It is quite possibly the worst sound in the world. After arriving in Atlanta from Tallahassee what seemed like just hours earlier I knew that my Christmas break was officially over. I received a call on my way up I-85 from Chad (pastor at Mercy) letting me know that Mercy during the cold months opens at 7AM rather than 8AM. The last time my alarm was set for those horrible morning hours was during my time working at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota when I had to do it every day. The temperature when I woke up was 32 degrees, not very used to that coming from Florida. I gathered up my coat, guitar, and a cup of coffee and headed out the door.

7AM I arrive at Mercy Community Church and as I walk through the gates I feel a sense of being home. I was greeted with a warm welcome by some of my friends from the community. The 100 cup coffee maker that runs on a timer had already brewed up some hot fresh coffee. I poured a cup for myself and got a chance to catch up with the friends I had not seen in almost three weeks. Jesus was already hard at work in the kitchen making hot grits to be served for breakfast. The day was young but the feeling I got was, it was going to be a special day!

8AM the fresh grits are served as more folks come from the outside to warm their insides from the cold night before. I enjoy a hot bowl of grits as I have a conversation with Jesus about how everything he makes just tastes so good. I always try to throw in the few Spanish words I know; he usually just has to laugh at how bad I butcher them.

11AM after prayer and bible study have finished starts the time of the different activities. On tap for the day is either Investigative Reporting with an actual reporter for those in the writing class. A chance for anyone wanting or needing to to sit down and talk with Megan who is a trained Spiritual Director one on one. Or the music/instrumental time with Chad and me. This was when I witnessed a transformation like none I had ever seen. A younger female somewhere in her 20's had joined the community earlier in the day, it was her first time to Mercy. She walked in late morning carrying a guitar on her back supporting a very alternative look. When it came time for music she sat down and joined the circle. Chad told me to start the playing because he had to go get a few things done. After pouring yet another cup of coffee I was ready to begin. Not exactly sure what to do I started by playing and singing "This Little Light of Mine" and by no means was it a hit. This is when I invited our new friend to see if she wanted to play a song. She got the guitar out of her case and played us all a tune. She appeared very nervous by the shakiness in her hand and voice while playing and singing her song. Before she finished playing she got up and left for the bathroom obviously emotional and frustrated. The transformation I am talking about started when me and the other members of the community genuinely asked her six words "Come on back and join us!" She decided not to leave and sat back down in the circle. About this time Chad had come back so we played some community favorites like "Woke up this morning" and "Revolution." As our new friend played along she continued to gain confidence, after the song finished she played us one of her original tunes. This time smiling and proud to be singing her original piece. As the hour ended it seemed as though she was a completely different person.

Noon time arrived and our new friend decided to join us on our walk out to the streets to serve lunch. On the way to the first stop she explained to me how she had spent most of her life as a freight train jumper and been all over the country. The next thing she said came as a sudden surprise, "I have wanted to be a part of a church family for many years and I think I have finally found that church." What a powerful thing to hear, something I had never experienced. Growing up in the Presbyterian Church I have never been the one looking for the next person to convert. So to be a witness to our new friend verbalizing that she wanted to be a part of the church was amazing.

2PM we walk back to Mercy to clean up and close for the day and our friend is still tagging along. "I have not had this much fun in a long time" or "This has been a great start to the day" are some of the positive quotes that continued to flow out of her mouth as we cleaned. At one point she even did a full on cartwheel and almost took one of the other community members out she was so excited. Chad sat down with her and taught her some more of his music that she had loved earlier in the day. He even let her have some copies of his songs because she really wanted to learn the chords. Then after a smile and a hug she was off. The gates at Mercy were closing for the day but the love that left out into the Atlanta streets was still shining.

To wrap it all up. It might have taken 6 cups of coffee and a simple sentence by a total stranger for me to see, but today I truly felt the power of God here in Atlanta. Simple genuine hospitality to a girl that might have had nothing became everything. The little things in life do make the biggest differences. "Come on back and join us!" Six words is all it took to see a sudden transformation. What little things can you do today?