I think part of this came from my reflections over the last week about moving into a new apartment and my recent rebirthday (and where my life was at the time I gave my it to Christ).  Now I have a roof over my head and a bed to sleep in.  I have food in my belly and a shirt on my back.  I have a job and friends.  Most importantly, I have a God who knows and loves me.  There's nothing I really lack.

I decided against blogging about this last night as I preferred to sit in the moment and enjoy counting my blessings, and that may have been best because this morning the point was driven home even more.

Anyone who knew me in State College knows that I loved my Sunday mornings at Starbucks.  I went to church on Saturday nights and that left me free to go to Starbucks to read, pray, and listen to God for hours at a time on Sunday mornings.  I had some awesome God time there and unexpected experiences with a variety of people.

Today I was fortunate to be able to do it again - but not the way I'd planned.  I decided to let myself sleep until I wasn't tired this morning and I was amazed that I stayed in bed until almost 9:30!  My goal has always been to start my time at Starbucks by 8:30 or 9:00 on Sunday mornings so I was already off to a poor start.

In Indianapolis there's a section of town called "Mass Ave."  It's actually a piece of Massachusetts Avenue where the hip shops and restaurants are found and my first Indy Starbucks is there.  That's where I planned to go this morning, despite it not being the closest one to where I live.  I made the treck there and found a parking spot about a block away, but when I entered I found the tiny shop overrun by people and not a spot remained for me to squat... so I left.  I was disappointed, but I thought about the unexpected appointments God had created for me on previous occasions so I trusted that perhaps something like that was going to happen today.

I made the drive back to the Starbucks that's about a block from my apartment (I could have walked) and found lots of empty seats there, so I parked myself at one of the tables on the front patio and began my reading.  I was through my first reading and actually writing about my previous evening when a homeless guy came up asking for change.  I told him I had no money but he proceeded to sit down and inquire about what I was doing.  He then told me about the cross he had around his neck and how Jesus promised that God would look after us.  It was at that point that he noticed the Bible in my bag and he pulled it out to read to me.

I got the impression he had no idea where he was going so he opened up to a page that I had bookmarked and read the first passage that caught his eye - whether he knew it or not, it turned out to be exactly the right passage.

I thought of my current place in life, moving to Indianapolis where I knew two people and had no job... I have no idea what God's plan for me is here - but I know that He's got it under control and I just need to trust Him and have faith.

This guy also reminded me of where I was seven years ago when I was living in my jeep and sleeping on friends' couches.  I wasn't so far removed from where he is now except that I had a car and he doesn't.  I've been blessed SO MUCH since then and I need to share the blessings with those who are without.  Despite being chastised by the ladies behind the counter at Starbucks, I bought this guy a breakfast sandwich and thanked him for talking to me.  He helped me see a little clearer the reason why I'm in Indy.

I only hope I blessed him as much as he blessed me.