Find a Community Well

It’s not abnormal to pull into a coffee shop to quench our thirst. Coffee shops are also environments to quench our thirst for social interaction—sometimes daily banter about politics, the weather, or retelling a hilarious story. On the flipside, other conversations delve deep into personal struggles and relational wounds. Coffee shops have become the place where communities interact on the deepest level, through laughter and tears.

With this in mind, perhaps coffee shops have become a great place for us to quench a thirst for living water—the living water described in John’s gospel by Jesus to the woman at the well: “You would have asked him, and he would have given you living water” (John 4:10). This new understanding might change how we interact with those in our community.

Coffee shops are like the water wells of ancient days gone by, the hub of relational interaction. We may want our church building to be the hub of life and relationship, but it often isn’t. Perhaps it’s because there’s nothing in the church building that people physically need? Coffee, however, rightly or wrongly, has become the physical necessity in modern society. Due to this physical need, coffee shops have become the community hubs that churches are struggling to attain. Maybe we should bring more of Christ’s living water into our coffee shops?

Do you have a favorite coffee shop that you frequent? Why do you go there? Who do you meet there? How can you bring the living water of Jesus into that well today?

Pray: Lord, help me see my local coffee shop like a community well. Show me who I need to spark up a conversation with. Show me who needs a smile or a word of encouragement. Help me be courageous. Help me bring Your living water into someone’s life today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.