I’m at it again.
I had to smile as I shared with a small group of women around my kitchen table that I started Mezzo Coffee House to create an environment such as the one we were enjoying in my home. A place to connect, encourage, and inspire each other. But then…I was no longer able to enjoy that side of it as Mezzo grew into a bustling coffee house & restaurant. Catering, cooking, and managing staff filled my days with little time to focus on the heart of what drew me to it all.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED it! I wouldn’t go back and change a thing. The friendships I made, the knowledge I gained, and the fun I had were well worth it all. I cherish the time I had at Mezzo and I’m grateful that I was able to be a part of its birth in our community. I’m also thrilled that a wonderful couple came in to take over the reins and bring it on the next leg of its journey.
I don’t miss picking up 8-10 gallons of milk a night, but I sure do miss decorating that place for the holidays. I’m nuts about Christmas and the more it looked like a cheesy Hallmark movie, the better! Mark & I spent each Thanksgiving Day decking the halls at Mezzo, filling the windows with lights, and hours of wreath fluffing.
Fast forward to now, and I have a table full of wonderful women who I am sharing the next 5 weeks with as we connect, encourage, and inspire each other. Hospitality is my jam, so I love that I get to bake yummy treats, pour coffee, (are we seeing a theme here???) and share what’s on my heart with them. I feel like I’ve come home again, and it is wonderful.
What do you love to do? Are you doing it? Is there a way you can start, even in just a small way?
Our lives are a succession of seasons, changing, moving, and yet…there is generally an overarching theme that weaves through all our seasons to reveal who we are and what our heart’s passion is.
I want to encourage you not to get frustrated if your current season is not your favorite. It’s just a season, change is always on the horizon. Meanwhile, what can you learn? How can you grow? What is God teaching you today?
The topic of our first Praise and Coffee around my kitchen table this week was:
Finding Your Plan & Purpose
It was a little bit of a bait-and-switch because ultimately, I brought us back to the idea that our journey, our plan, God’s purpose for us, is directly correlated to following and living for God. If we are on that path with Him, we won’t help but run face-first into His plans and purpose for our lives. Bottom line, seek Him, not your purpose. Also, look at the overarching theme in your life. What do you love to do? What do you keep coming back to? God put that in you, and it is a huge clue to His purpose for you.
This sums it up well:
Ephesians 1:11-12 The Message Bible
It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, He had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose He is working out in everything and everyone.
Let’s not get stressed about finding our purpose, just stay on the path with Him.
It’s not a destination we must get to, it's a journey we get to enjoy.
I’m working on a series of Praise and Coffee Conversations (set up like the first book Praise and Coffee to Go - available on Amazon) that I hope to publish in the next year to help others that want to connect but not looking for a deep study.
If you like gathering women around your table or in a coffee shop, you might want to consider hosting your own Praise and Coffee group. Drop me an email if you would like more info.
After the past year, I can’t think of a better time to connect, encourage, and inspire one another!
Sue
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