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Decaf coffee anyone?

I was on the beach, spending time with God.  I sat in the sunshine contemplating His words while the beautiful ocean lapped at the shore under a cloudless sky.  As I finished journaling what He had spoken to me, I smelt coffee. I really like the smell of coffee, it was unmistakable, yet no one near me appeared to be drinking any. The aroma of the fresh brew was so strong, so distinct but then just as soon as it came, it was gone. The immediate thought that came was, have a decaf coffee. I don’t drink caffeinated drinks after breakfast but at that moment, I thought, how strange, I don’t even feel like having a coffee. But I felt God nudge me and say, go have a decaf coffee. 

I gathered my things and walked up the hill towards my hostel. I was walking past the only coffee shop I knew that served decaf coffee but still I had no desire to drink one. It just didn’t make sense. Then suddenly God said, someone in that coffee shop needs Me. I stopped in my tracks. Ah! There is the reason I needed to go in there. Why didn’t I just obey, without question, from the beginning! So I turned back and walked the short distance to the coffee shop. I ordered my decaf coffee and sat down, the only customer there. Two more ladies came in shortly after me but I didn’t feel God saying it was them I needed to talk to. I finished the delicious decaf brew and the little scrumptious cookies that came with it. It was a treat, even if I didn’t feel like it! I looked around again and asked God, who is it Lord? He said, its one of the staff, there’s a sick child. 
So I went over to the two lovely ladies that had served me and explained in my limited Portuguese that God had told me to come in and have a coffee there. I then asked if either of them had children, both said no, but one immediately added, I have nephews. I asked if any one of them was sick, she said, yes. She then proceeded to share with me that her little nephew, Nicholas, had a problem with his eye, it seemed serious from what I could tell. So I said, God knows and I believe He is going to heal him. As I said that, she began to cry. At that point more people were beginning to come into the cafe. So I said, can I pray for him? She nodded yes, unable to speak. So I held her hand across the counter and prayed a simple prayer. I wish I could’ve given her a hug then but I knew she was under pressure to serve the others, so I smiled and said, God bless you and left. 

I walked away with a certain spring in my step joyfully knowing that God was going to heal that little boy while also showing His deep love and care to an aunt that had been weighed down by the burden of sickness. 

I didn’t get an opportunity to ask after Nicholas until about three weeks later. His aunt smiled, recognising me as I walked in and after enquiring, she confirmed, yes, he’s better. Wow! And, finally, I got to give her a hug. All this and a lovely decaf coffee too. Extravagant love! I am so grateful to God for His love for us, not only that but His willingness to pursue us and reveal it. 

I hope in future to just instantly obey God when I receive His prompting. In this case I remember thinking, how expensive a decaf coffee was and that I really didn’t need one or fancy one. But my obedience was instantly triggered when God defined why I needed to go to the coffee shop. God could’ve just said, go to the coffee shop and pray for someone there. But He instead sent the aroma of coffee my way. The truth is there had been many an afternoon when I had wanted to have a decaf coffee. I was reluctant to buy one because it wasn’t a need to me, more an extravagance. But God wanted to show me that He doesn’t just love through me, He loves me.

 1 John 3:1 ESV See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are…