Clay in the Hands

Last week I met a friend for breakfast and I encountered an interesting phenomenon.  We were to meet at 6:30 at a local restaurant.  I arrived a few minutes early thinking that I could have a little time to think and pray.  As I pulled into the parking lot, I noticed the lot was practically full of vehicles but the lights to the restaurant were not on.  Thinking that strange, I gathered my things and headed to the door.  On the door, the hours of operation were posted – opening at 6:30, but I could see through the glass door and all the windows that there were people at 4 different tables inside, sitting in the dark.

Being the curious person that I am, I entered the restaurant, found a table by the light coming from the fountain drink machine and began to observe.  All the patrons were drinking coffee and talking as if this were a normal day.  Occasionally, one of the men would get up, go to the coffee pot and make the rounds refilling cups.   At 6:30, the owner came out of the kitchen and turned on the lights, then went right back to the kitchen.

Once the customary restaurant operations began, I asked the waitress (who also happened to be the owner) about what I had just witnessed.  Her basic response was that she arrived everyday a little before 6 and put the coffee on, unlocked the door and people began showing up to drink coffee and talk.  But she did not allow the lights to be turned on because that would communicate to the passersby that the restaurant was open for business.

As I have reflected on that odd experience, it has reminded me of the importance of community.  We were created for relationships – for community.  We need one another.

These patrons were willing to sit in the dark in order to have community.  Could they wait until 6:30 to have community?  Certainly I would think so.  But they found a place that would allow them to gather and they take advantage of it each morning – even if it means sitting in the dark.

All of us need community.  Unfortunately, many never turn to the church for those relationships – they turn to coffee shops and bars to fill the need.  And the question I have to ask is, “Why?”  Shouldn’t the church be the one place people can find genuine community?  Shouldn’t people feel welcome with God’s people?

I realize the topic is not as simple as I make it sound.  Some don’t feel comfortable in church because they know the values upheld by the church and they have no intention of living by those values.  But even given that reality, shouldn’t the church strive to remind people that none of us are perfect and we all need one another to make it through the day?

I would suggest that the patrons in the restaurant, sitting in the dark to have community, are experiencing both a literal and figurative mere shadow of what genuine community should be.  Church should be the real deal because Jesus should be part of it.

Something to think about on this day.

Be blessed!