Are you smarter than a 3 year old?

"Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. BUT GOD chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." - 1 Cor 1:26-27

Yesterday, when I was hanging out at Starbucks, I met a little girl named Cassie. She was three years old and feisty. She wanted to show me how she could twirl, say her abc's, do a somersault (well, she didn't make it ALL the way over, but she made the effort), and count to five is Spanish. As we sat and talked (she did most of the talking) I realized that THIS must be how God sees me. All my wisdom must sound like the abc's to him. All my talent must look like a twirling 3 yr. old ballerina. Does he just humor my foolishness?

As I read in 1 Corinthians this morning, I realized, he loves my foolishness. He loves my 3-year-old wisdom. He loves it because in my stupidity, HE is given glory.

Part of what makes me nervous about going to another country is learning the language. I LOVE talking to people, and it is going to come out sounding like a 3-year-old's babbling. This was God's reminder to me that he doesn't need my words or my wisdom. "God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe." - 1 Cor 1:21b The next time you find yourself talking to someone about Jesus, thinking you sound foolish, remember that God loves using the foolishness of a 3-year-old.

Thoughts from an airport...

People walking around, not seeing anyone.
We might be stirred by a bump on the arm
or a distant word
But besides that, we want to be in our world.
'Why are you in my space?!'

Are the confident truly confident
Or are we playing pretend?
Are the angry truly angry
Or is it a facade to hide the hurting child within?

MUST we constantly be on our cell phones
Or do we just constantly need to be needed?
Does the silence on the outside reveal a peace inside
Or is someone screaming to be heard?

Who will open up their eyes and see?
Who will be the one to scream...
ENOUGH!

I refuse to walk by the hurting, the lost, the broken.
I refuse to pretend like every thing's ok.
I choose to love and listen
I will be Jesus to those who have heard but never seen.

*These were some of my thoughts yesterday as I was stuck in the Chicago airport yesterday for a couple hours. In the midst of writing I met a girl, Sarah flying back from London. She had just been at her grandma's funeral, she was sick and the flight to get back home took way longer than planned. You never know when God is going to put someone in your path who is hurting and in need of Jesus. It reminded me to OPEN MY EYES and truly SEE people.Many people have HEARD of Jesus but never SEEN what he looks like.

The place you belong...

Is there a place you walk into and it feels like home? The aroma is sweet. You can taste it before a drop of it ever falls on your tongue. You recognize the couches, the lamps, the people… You hold that first cup, feeling the warmth on your hands. That first sip sucks you in and before you know it, you’re curled up with a blanket, journal, and the perfect cup of coffee.

Coffee is home to me, but it runs deeper than that… it’s a coffee shop. There is something about it that makes me feel like I could sit here for hours, talk to whoever comes in, drink my coffee, laugh, dig deep into the soul and just sit.

But again, it’s more than the shop… The other night as some of my friends and I were at Starbucks in downtown Charlotte, I got this feeling all over again. I realized that when I am in a coffee shop I am home. I belong there. And when I’m not there, I miss it.

It’s the people. It’s Wallis, a 40 year old man going to college for the first time to become an architect. It’s Amanda, a Swiss woman preaching the gospel on the streets. It’s a 70 year old man teaching us “new single missionary girls” how to defend ourselves with a newspaper.

That were I belong… with people. Loving people to Jesus.

The Way I See It #284
“You can’t lead the people, if you don’t love the people. You can’t save the people, if you don’t serve the people.” – Cornel West

Sounds like something Jesus would have said in a coffee shop.