Coffee Shop in Chennai, India
For as long as I can remember, my grandfather would go down to the local coffee shop and gossip, err, visit with his friends. They were all older gentlemen and what you would call “regulars” at this place. The coffee shop itself is nothing great. In fact, it’s somewhat of a dive. My grandfather’s coffee shop was probably built in the ‘50s and maybe updated in the ‘70s. That didn’t make any difference. That’s not why he was there. I also don’t think he went there for the coffee, or the bacon and egg breakfast. He went there because he knew that he would be able to share a cup of coffee with friends.
In the last couple of years I’ve found myself at the coffee shop as well, and I see many connections to my grandfather’s coffee shop. From the outside it looks a little old and run down. If the building inspector stopped by, it might even be red tagged. When you go in, it doesn’t seem much better. In a good coffee shop like this one, you might even have several health code violations going on at any given moment. Let’s just say there’s no “A” or “B” in the window. What’s the draw to a place like this? It’s the friends you’re meeting there, the regulars you see every time you stop by, and the owner who remembers your order, as well as the last trip you went on.
In India, the Breeze Hotel had the “Kane and Abel” coffee shop. That was the meeting place every morning before we left for the day. Just like here, many of the same people would be there every morning and the server would remember who wanted regular coffee instead of the south Indian variety.
The similarities between the three coffee shops are striking. One common theme is fellowship. We gather in places like these in order to fellowship with like-minded people. We all have our own “coffee shops.”
We’re gathered here this morning to worship our Lord. If you look around, you probably see a lot of “regulars.” In addition to worshiping, we’re also called here to fellowship with each other and God. When we leave, we’re refreshed and ready to start the week. I don’t know about you, but I make it to the coffee shop whenever I can, and I’m looking forward to fellowshipping with people like Larry Fuller in that big “coffee shop in the sky.”
