MINNESOTA BAPTIST ASSOCIATION

Plant Now!

by Dave Barba of Press On! Ministries

Two Coffee Shops

(A parable for church planters—by Claudia Barba)

Once upon a time, there were two brothers, Al and Zack. Their parents taught them to make delicious coffee. They grew up to be good coffee-makers.

A1 enjoyed serving coffee at his kitchen table. "This is delicious coffee," his friends always said, and they invited others. Soon the group of coffee drinkers grew too large for Al's kitchen. He set up chairs in the living room for a weekly coffee night. Folks talked, laughed, and sipped from steaming mugs.

Al liked mingling with people, knowing their names, their joys and problems. Preparing and serving good coffee was his delight.

The coffee group grew, so they moved to a rented downtown building. Soon, Al and his friends bought the building. Soon it too was overcrowded, but still more people wanted to come for the delicious coffee.

Al's coffee shop expanded into the building next door, and then grew again to fill a city block. Al and his friends were now in debt. But a thousand people could be seated at once, and many drove a long distance for the privilege. Coffee had to be served in shifts, yet people still came, because the coffee was so delicious.

Al's place became the biggest, fastest-growing coffee shop in the state. Aspiring coffee-makers admired him. Everybody in the coffee world knew his name. He was a success. But Al had to spend more time overseeing staff than brewing coffee, and he worried about debt. He soon began diluting his coffee, just a little bit, to increase profits.

Al missed the old days. And he missed his brother. Zack had also once served coffee in his kitchen. He, too, had invited friends into his living room, and then to a rented building.

Zack's coffee shop also expanded again and again. His shop was crowded, but still the people came, some from far away, to sip delicious coffee. Zack sketched plans for expansion and contemplated applying for a big loan.

But then one of Zack's commuting customers, Mike, had an idea. "Teach me to make good coffee. I'll serve it in my kitchen to my neighbors who have been driving here. Then you'll have more room in the home coffee shop."

So Zack taught Mike to make coffee. After a while, Mike had his own shop, in his own downtown. Zack trained another commuting Mike, and soon there were three shops rather than one, all serving the same delicious coffee.

Whenever Zack's shop gets too crowded, he just does it again. He has not yet applied for that loan. And more people than ever are drinking delicious coffee

Zack still mingles with his customers. He knows their names, their joys and problems. They think he's a success. He doesn't spend most of his time overseeing staff and worrying about debt. He's never even considered diluting his coffee. There's no need to.

Zack still serves delicious coffee. He always will. It's his delight.