Suspended Coffee

Daily Gratitude Year 5-Day 31: Today, I am grateful that coffee can speak love.

Today, I learned about "suspended coffee".

This video is about the Italian born custom of purchasing a coffee for yourself and then paying for one more, for the person who has no money to buy coffee. It is a pay-it-forward, random act of kindness in a cup of java. How sweet it is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn0JA28sIFA

Some include allow patrons to pay for a meal, too. It is literally giving the hungry and desperate a safe, warm place to savor a hot coffee and maintain their dignity. It is giving to "the least of these..." and tangibly showing that there are people who care and care to make a difference.

It has caught on in different places. I don't know if we have any local establishments that provide this opportunity to give.

My heart can hardly take the ugly in the media. It is a perfect day to share something positive and good. There is joy in giving. There is blessing in receiving. It is hand warming and heart softening for all. It is a reminder that there is love and kindness in the world and we can be His hands.

Hatred and violence seem to happen in clusters. I love this gentle reminder that love can be poured out one cup of coffee at a time.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.  I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ -Matthew 25:34-40

Hate runs cold and rampant... it often turns violent. 

Love is a gentle force that covers us in warmth. Love always wins... but it requires action. 

"And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” -Joshua 24:15

We can choose to be love... with coffee!

Today, I am grateful that coffee can speak love.