Chosen To Go

  “Welcome to the center of God’s will.” I read those words a year ago today. One of my college professors texted that message to me shortly after I pulled into Detroit. I remember feeling overwhelmed, yet thoroughly excited to be in the place God had asked me to go. I can hardly believe a year has passed since I first entered the Detroit phase of His will for my life. Needless to say, the anniversary has made me do a lot of reflecting. I really wish I could share all the wonderful things Jesus has done for me, but this post would become the length of a short book. So, I will instead try to hit some of the highlights. What better way than to give you a sampling from my photo gallery?  August 2022 This picture was taken within the first month of my move. My cousins were visiting in the area, so they stopped by my apartment. I recall excitedly telling them about my job at Awake Cafe and the opportunities to share Christ with customers. At that point, I was all energy and vision ...

  Happy February! To anyone who has entered a store in the past few weeks, you are aware of the approaching Valentine’s Day. I don’t celebrate aside from the chocolate, but the holiday reminds us of the gift of love. I’ve recently been pondering God’s love to the world. In my own life, that love has been so faithful! As I was driving to a friend’s house, tears of gratitude blurred the road in front of me while I considered how relentlessly He pursued my soul. He always respected my free will, but He went so far out of His way again and again to demonstrate how much I matter to Him.  The same love that faithfully drew me back to God is extended to the whole world, and it’s my privilege to be a part of sharing that wonderful news with the city of Detroit. Today, that does not entail street preaching, sharing my testimony, or any other radical form of evangelism. Instead, it involves sending emails regarding cafe applicants, bagging coffee beans, and interacting with customers. I...

As I write to you this morning, I bask in the truth of Psalm 89:1 - “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever.” Aren’t the mercies of God such a beautiful theme? The greatness of that subject merits unending praise. I recently read a chapter from A.W. Tozer’s book Knowledge of the Holy  in which he expounded on that particular attribute of God. I was blessed once again recalling how His mercy saved my soul, and the joy of sharing His truth with others rekindled in my heart.  Since my last post, I had one particular opportunity to share His greatness with a group of customers in Awake Cafe. I struck up conversation with an older lady and three of her adult granddaughters who were spending time together at the shop. I learned one of the grandchildren, whose name is Tierra, used to live in Tampa, Florida. Since my roots are in the same general area, that gave us some common ground. We chatted for awhile, then they asked about my move to Michigan. I shared how Jesus clearly ...

 Greetings from Detroit! Yesterday ushered in the fall season, and the weather definitely got the memo. In fact, I find the crisp wind quite cold, breathing threats of winter, but that is the perspective of a Floridian. 🙃 Since I last wrote, nothing monumental has happened. My schedule has been full between working for the shop and speaking in services to represent EFM’s mission in Detroit. The repetitious, mundane phases can be discouraging; we all want to see obvious successes for the Kingdom of Christ. Yet, I know God works through His servants’ consistent obedience (Galatians 6:9). The ministry is not mine, but His. I know I am in the center of His will, and He is working behind the scenes.  One of the ways He is moving is through helping me build connections with the children in my church (New Beginnings Fellowship). I have been encouraged to watch Angel, a ten-year-old girl who recently gave her heart to Jesus. She comes to church with her grandmother, and I’ve been abl...

 The title of this post reflects the praise of my heart as God has repeatedly demonstrated its truth in my life. Jesus is always faithful! As David expressed in Psalm 18:30, God’s ways are perfect. In fact, that personal knowledge opened the door for one of the first opportunities to share my testimony in Awake Cafe.  As I mentioned in my first blog post, people regularly look at me funny when they hear about my move to Detroit. Such was the case when one of our regular customers learned I had just relocated from Florida. He bluntly, yet kindly, told me I was crazy and said God must have sent me. Accurate conclusion. So, I shared about the Lord’s guidance. Even though I don’t understand how all the details of my call are going to work out, I trust my Shepherd. He does all things well!  That particular encounter did not revolve around the Gospel specifically, but I was so happy to tell about God’s faithfulness! I recall the following words of a well-known song: “On the wit...

It is hard to believe I have almost reached the one-week mark of living in Detroit. Various people have asked me what I have done this week, so I aim to share that here.  On Monday and Tuesday, I simply settled into my place and learned the joys of spending large amounts of money to fill my refrigerator for the first time. 😄 The rest is boring details that would be a waste of my time and yours.  I spent a few hours on Wednesday organizing a recently installed bookshelf in the cafe. I really enjoyed categorizing by topic, especially knowing the purpose of the collection is to connect customers with good literature, both religious and recreational. Many of the books will be given away to interested readers. In fact, later in the week, I overheard one of the cafe employees sharing a Bible with a man. What a joy to be in the background of a process through which truth reaches hungry hearts!  Here is a picture of the shelf to give an idea of the setting. Some of the main cate...