Jump directly to the content
Subscribe:
magcover

Already a subscriber?

Home > Issues > 2002 > Fall > Starbucks Spirituality

Daniel Hill holds a steady part-time job working one or two shifts a week at Starbucks. It's hardly a career-track position, and it's not that he needs the extra cash or battles a secret caffeine addiction.

It's the people.

Purple hair, belly-button rings, tattoos, black-painted fingernails—those people.

For Hill, whose day job is ministering on staff with Willow Creek Community Church's Axis outreach, Starbucks provides a context to build meaningful relationships with postmodern, Gen-Next twentysomethings who are far from God.

"Nothing has been more transforming for me than working at Starbucks," says Hill, "These people matter to me."

But the moonlighting gig isn't a free pass to easy evangelism. His coffee colleagues are like a good cup of triple espresso—plenty of steam, a little bitter, and enough kick to knock you on your backside if you aren't careful.

Exhibit A: "The first day Debbie worked at Starbucks, one of the shift supervisors points at me and asks her, 'Did you hear what his real job is?' After she hears I work at a church, Debbie freaks out. She says, 'Three years ago my 16-year-old daughter was raped and murdered. Tell me, what kind of God would let that happen? I believe in God. I just have a real problem with him.'"

Hill isn't alone in facing these kinds of questions. Suspicion and distrust of Christians, and wariness of God are readily observed.

Consider the bumper sticker: "Dear God, please save me from your followers." Or the ubiquitous Christian "fish" that has mysteriously grown feet courtesy of the Darwinian crowd—a symbol of faith sarcastically twisted by the culture.

Even Christian bookstores carry such titles as: "Following Jesus Without Embarrassing God," "Toxic Faith," and "The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse."

With fingers pointed at Christians, we're obliged to identify the underlying accusations and offer a response. Three questions are at the core.

Why should I trust you?


Daniel Hill suggests that 90 percent of the accusations Christians face are rooted in mistrust. "I don't find that people have a problem with Jesus," he says. "They have a problem with Christians."

Anyone who claims authority today—politicians, parents, or pastors—will face the question of trust.

Rick Richardson, author of Evangelism Outside the Box and InterVarsity Christian Fellowship's national field director for evangelism, observes: "When people ask questions about homosexuality, for instance, we're tempted to think they're asking questions about right and wrong. But they're not. They're asking about dominance and oppression.

"Homosexual strugglers look at what the church has done to women, they look at slavery, at this history of collaboration between Christian faith and Western dominance—and they say, 'In light of that, how can I trust you?'"

If that's the question, how can we respond?

The answer requires more than words. Christians, with PowerPoint presentations and four-point evangelistic outlines, have mastered the art of proclamation. But words alone ...

log in

To view the rest of this article, you must be a subscriber to LeadershipJournal.net. Activate your online account for complete access.

or
From Issue:Generosity, Fall 2002 | Posted: October 1, 2002

Related Training

from BuildingChurchLeaders.com
Postmodern Spirituality

Postmodern Spirituality

Lessons learned in evangelism and Christianity while serving a cynical generation.
Where Would Jesus Hang Out?

Where Would Jesus Hang Out?

Using a coffee shop as a remote office or meeting room is, I believe, a great strategy for leaders.

Not a Subscriber?

Subscribe Today!

  • One risk-free issue
  • Instant access to all Leadership Journal web content
  • OFFER DETAILS

Print subscriber? Activate your online account for complete access.

rating & comments

Average User Rating: Not rated

You must be a Leadership Journal subscriber to post comments
(on articles open to the public, you must at least register for a free account).
Login
or
Subscribe
or
Register
God Behind the Veil

God Behind the Veil

His ways are hidden from ordinary eyes, but not from the eyes of faith.

Home Improvement Meets the Gospel

This Is Our City

Home Improvement Meets the Gospel

How two co-founders of the home-supply store TreeHouse infuse their business with environmentally sound faith.

more | current issue

Books & Culture

A Measure of Forgiveness

A Measure of Forgiveness

Memories of a British...

Today's Christian Woman

Amy Grant: How Mercy Looks from Here

Amy Grant: How Mercy Looks from Here

The Queen of Christian...

Small Groups

Mental Illness Is Mainstream

Mental Illness Is Mainstream

We must help the one...

Shopping