Today I went to what may be my favorite place ever. It is this little coffee shop that is right next to campus called "Mugshotz." It is small and quaint, you feel the warmness of hot soup and coffee when you walk in on a cold day. Not only the warmness of what is cooking in the kitchen exist but the coffee shop is owned by a family that is so incredibly kind to say the least. I have particularly taken a fondness to a girl that works there that is about my age. Every time I come in, she knows what I am going to order (potato soup with a little bit of cheese, turkey sandwich on a croissant and an unsweet tea, 2 sweet in lows). Yesterday was the first time I have been back since before Christmas and the first thing she said to me is "we lost the recipe to your soup but we have these other great ones that I really think you would like in the meantime until we find it." haha...she may be one of the most precious people I have been around. I had vegetable soup, it was just as good if not better as the potato :) Well, there is my plug for the day...go to Mugshotz, great food...wonderful people!
As I was there, I was reading in Genesis the story God is about to destroy Sodom and he sends angels to tell Lot to "Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept way." If you know the story well, you know the along the way as Lot was running with his wife and daughters, his wife looked back and turned into a pillar of salt.
As I was reading this, I saw so many parallels in my own life. I am in a situation right now that I feel like I have been trying to escape for over a year. At times, I have been successful in distancing myself...other times, I have felt like it is completely impossible and I fail, more times than not. As I was reading this, I thought to myself "I should have been a pillar of salt a long time ago" haha. Every time the Lord tries to pull me out of this, every time He tells me "Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away." I tend to respond with "But Lord, it's too hard...I know that if I could make it through the valley, there are beautiful hills ahead waiting and I know if I stay here, it will destroy me but why do I have to run through the valleys and not even look back....how in the world is that possible?" He usually responds with 4 words..."My grace is sufficient" simple, but powerful. So I am trying again to get out, to leave...before I am absolutely destroyed by this. I know that there are valleys ahead and I know that I will be tempted to look back but I am determined that by His grace and power, I will get out, I will go through the valleys but I will make it eventually to the hills.
