Cookies with Michelle
Back when my wife taught school in Sherman, she had a coworker who lived in our neighborhood. This coworker had a young daughter named Michelle. They drove past our house most days and Michelle had seen me outside in the yard. I think I had only met her one time when they were out walking, but for some reason she decided she liked me. One day she told her mother that she needed to come to my house, sit on the front porch, and eat cookies with me. Her mother thought it was cute but that it was only a passing fancy and Michelle would soon forget about it. That was not the case. Michelle was persistent. She kept telling her mother that she needed to come to my house and sit on the porch and eat cookies with me. Finally, her mother called my wife, explained the situation, and almost apologetically asked if Michelle could come over. My wife was laughing when she relayed the request to me, which I gladly accepted. Who am I to turn down cookies and conversation with someone who wants to just sit and visit for a while?
Michelle came over and we sat on the front porch eating cookies and visiting while her mother and my wife visited elsewhere. Nothing earthshaking happened. We enjoyed each other’s company and the cookies and just sat there for a while talking about whatever popped into our heads. It was a beautiful day and a nice visit. One thing that made it so nice was that it was not something I would normally do. But maybe I should. I think the world might be a much better place if we would all take more time to sit on the porch with someone to visit and maybe eat a cookie or two.
The ever increasing pace of today’s world works against that. We feel the need to organize every bit of our time and arrange our schedules to achieve maximum efficiency. We are constantly busy, whether it be work or school or church or family or sports or shopping or hobbies or clubs or whatever else we try to cram into every last nook and cranny of our day. Such busyness prevents us from taking the time to just sit and visit with our friends and families. On top of that, every since the pandemic, the fears of interacting with other people who may be infected with some terrible disease has caused many to turn inward and isolate themselves. That is not the way life should be lived.
Perhaps you need a reminder to take time to do nothing other than sit and visit with your Lord. “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10). Share your thoughts with Him and listen to Him speak to you through His Word. Be refreshed in your relationship with the one who loves you and gave Himself up for you. Revel in the love that was not content to let you receive the punishment your sins deserve, but came down to take your place and give you forgiveness and everlasting life. Spend some alone time with God. And maybe even eat a few cookies while you’re at it.
I did not keep in touch with Michelle, who by now is probably grown with children of her own. But I remember her every so often. If I could speak to her again, I would thank her for the visit and the reminder that I need to just sit and visit (and maybe eat cookies) with folks more often.
