One of my favorite things to do in Albania is to take the bus downtown, walk around, and ask the Lord where he wants to hang out. He usually leads me to some kind of coffee shop and tells me to do something to shine his light to the people there. This looks different every time. Just an hour ago, I found myself at this random cafe & bar. (Pretty much every coffee shop in Albania is also a bar.) So, I sat down, ordered my coffee, and turned on some podcasts from my church in Kentucky. It’s hard to find time to be filled up in a life full of pouring out and Sunday services always in a foreign language. I was excited to continue processing with the Lord and plan worship for my team for this evening.
There was a large group of men on the other side of the cafe hassling the bartender as she continued to bring them rounds this afternoon. Though I cannot understand Albanian, her body language obviously showed that she was irritated and uncomfortable. The barista was busy, so she also just happened to bring me my coffee. As she came over to me, I felt this urge from the Holy Spirit to start a conversation with her. “But God she’s really busy, and what if she doesn’t speak English, and what do I say, and all I wanted to do was listen to this podcast. I don’t have anything left to give. I just need communion with you right now.” All I could see were obstacles and my own selfish desires, but all God cared about was using me as a vessel to bring the kingdom to her. “This is communion, Danielle. This is being filled up.” I was still arguing with God when she walked away after giving me my coffee. “Oh, missed my chance,” I thought.
I noticed that as she walked back to the bar, she took her apron off, picked up her pack of cigarettes, briefly spoke to her coworkers, and made a beeline for the door for what I could only assume was her break. As she buzzed by my table, I caught her attention. I asked her what her name was. “Lena,” she said. I then asked her if she was okay, and she immediately sat down at my table with me, lit her cigarette, and poured her heart out. She spoke amazing English. I noticed everything about her was shaking, her body, her voice, her spirit as she kept talking. Before I knew it, she had told me about her family situation, her frustration with those men at the table, and the recent assault she had been through that made her skin crawl when she had to deal with those men. Her family didn’t believe her, and she didn’t have anyone to process her experience with. She told me everything, and I was all ears. I asked some follow up questions, and we talked, laughed, and cried for about two hours. And then it happened, she asked me how I had so much peace. “I haven’t stopped shaking on the inside since everything happened.” I shared that my peace comes from the Lord, and without hesitation she said,”I want that.” She accepted Christ as her Lord and savior! We celebrated with coffee, and I helped her find a counselor she could see to keep working through things and a church she could go to. I have a new friend and we all have a new sister in Christ, y’all!!
It never ceases to amaze me how God can work in such seemingly small ways to impact someones life for the kingdom forever. I simply listened to where he wanted me to go get coffee, and simply because I was willing to listen to the Lord’s leading and give up my plans for the moment, Lena now has the peace and hope she’s been longing for. Thank you Jesus for shining so bright. Thank you for Lena. Thank you for coffee. Thank you for salvation, hope, love, redemption, and peace. Even in our weakest moments, when all we want is to be selfish and opt out of our responsibility as disciples, the Lord can fill us up by pouring us out if we simply listen and follow his leading. Keep your eyes and ears open, my friends. You never know who God might put in your path today.
Now, excuse me as I have even more to process with the Lord. I’m just going to go sit in awe and stare at the mountains with the Lord for awhile.
