“I don’t mind waiting, take all the time you need….”

Whenever I say that to folks who are helping me anywhere there is always an exhale, a look-up-and-smile, and lifted eyebrows. It’s very uncommon to not be in a rush.

“I’m not the typical American. I’ve done lots of work in many places where it’s a miracle if you get three things done in a day….then we start talking. Like today…

I went in to get new glasses today and I asked the woman helping me about her name.

“It’s Polish” she told me, “I was born in Poland” So I gossiped about my trips to Warsaw working with Ukrainian refugees, and my trip inside Ukraine, and the bomb craters and machine gun trenches and the people and the air raids sirens.

Then I took out my phone and showed her a picture of me and a giant pirogue and both cracked up, then it got solemn again, and we spoke of Jesus and the church and that God is the only hope for the Nations.

Next I rambled off to Costco to give them our money for a couple of thousand hand and toe warmers we will be giving out to our friends downtown this winter… “boy, you sure are planning on a cold winter”…

No, I replied, and started to share with a man who was in the Farmington Fire Department. And I spun tales of people we’ve met and healings we’ve seen and the God-who-saves orchestrating in all.

no, I don’t mind waiting. no, I don’t mind you asking questions. I will gossip about my Jesus anywhere