I’m not much of a coffee drinker, in fact I don’t drink coffee at all.  I don’t think I have ever bought a coffee for myself, and if I have, it wasn’t to savor the flavor. Recently, my wife and I were in Calgary visiting our daughter who happens to love coffee.  As a result, I have now visited more coffee shops in the last 5 days than I have in my entire life.

Being new to coffee shops, I observed the various places we visited and made some observations. I found that coffee shops often use black boards to display their menus.  I’m not sure if that’s because they often make mistakes and chalk is easy to erase, or if the people who work there are really neat printers and like to show it off.

 I also found these shops unique.  They each had their own unique decor and expressed their owner’s personality.  There were a couple of things, however, that were common in all.  The tables were small and very close together.  Strangers were sitting inches from me and nobody seemed to mind or even notice that they were in my space.

The other common thing was the noise level.  It was loud in these coffee shops on two levels.  First, the coffee machines make an incredible amount of noise for only working with water, milk and coffee beans (our coffee maker at home is virtually silent).  And then there is the talking. People have to talk over the noise of the machines, but also over the voices of the people sitting about 4 inches from their right ear.

Also, from the “research” I did, people like to frequent the same coffee shop often. Apparently, it’s because they like the atmosphere, or the location, or maybe it’s the coffee they like … but I can’t really comment on that – I just had water.  It was good tasting water, mind you, and I am now becoming a connoisseur of fine water.

I started thinking about the similarities between the coffee shop and the church, and I think there are some parallels to make.  Churches have a personality of their own just like coffee shops, and people sit close together when they are in the sanctuary and stand close together in the foyer after church. You might even find yourself right next to someone you don’t know well or have never met.  It’s loud in church when we sing, or when the pastor is trying to emphasize his point, and it is loud in the foyer before and after church with people talking.

There is one difference, however.  People don’t mind going to the same coffee shop over and over again, sitting by people they see often, while never interacting or getting to know them. It’s different at church.  People will soon look for another church if they come and no one talks to them.

The biggest difference between the coffee shop and the church is God.  His love for us has connected us together and should draw us towards those who enter our church for the first time. His love should motivate us to take that first step toward them or open our mouths to say hello.

No matter how much you love that black stuff in your cup, or the atmosphere of the shop, coffee will never move you to open up to the person next to you.  Only God can do that.

Until next time!

Pastor Paul