Last Saturday morning, I made plans to catch up with a couple friends and while I was looking forward to that time together, I did not expect the extra surprise & joy of making a new friend at that coffee shop, too.

Stove Top Roasters was a place I had never been to and wanted to try, why not try it with my couple of friends I was planning to meet up with? It’s like me to try new things, to take these small adventures, I find joy in trying out new places, it keeps the mundane a little more interesting in the day to day.

So that’s what I did.

I walked into the coffee shop about an hour prior to meeting my friends there, set my backpack and computer down, and took a phone call outside. As I took the call outside, I noticed someone walk in. My initial thoughts were, “I like their style, they seem cool.” It was cold out, my hands were hurting from the crisp air, I wrapped up the phone call and walked inside, at this point, about a half hour before my friends showed up.

I go and sit down where my backpack was laid out and realize, the person who had walked in that I initially thought had some cool style, was sitting at the same table as I. My eyes lit up a little, I felt a smile cross my face, I was curious. This person intrigued me.

Naturally, this person and I started chatting. “What’s your name?,” “what’s your name?” There was a click, a joy filled vibe, and a variety of open ended questions that started to spill out. There were smiles, laughter, depth, and sincerity. We talked about entrepreneurship, we realized we’re close to the same age, we shared some of our family and community backgrounds, we conversed some about our faith and spiritual journeys.

Twenty minutes goes by, “how did this just all come about?” I think to myself. “This is really fun” I say internally. “How did we just go so deep?” I think. “God is this a new friend for me to have, you know the kind of friend I was telling you I craved, desiring to have more peer interactions with someone that is also passionately pursuing entrepreneurship with purpose, faith, wholeheartedness, and joy?”

I think so. I think God answered my prayer and allowed this new friend of mine and I to meet and enjoy each other’s company. I felt warmth, peace, and gratitude for God as I think about the blessing this new friend is.

Joy is found in the big and little moments, memories, and events in life. Soak in those gifts, relish them, your brain, mind, and heart, thank you for it.