It's Cold Here in the Parking Lot

It's Cold Here in the Parking Lot

It was a bitter cold night. We were once again in the parking lot near the stores in our small suburban town passing out free pizza. Every Friday night for months, we had come to the parking lot to share the love of Jesus. We brought a fold out card table, 15 pizzas, cans of pop and the love of Christ. Sometimes, we were there in the rain, passing out pizza to kids as they drove by in their pick ups. Completely drenched, we stood in little riverlets of water and gave the kids pizza through the windows of their cars. They knew we would be there no matter what. And we were. We were there the night after a local high school student had been stuck on the train tracks and didn't make it. We shared the love of Jesus and watched broken hearts come to Jesus for salvation. We were there when it was so cold we couldn't feel our hands an feet.

And then came this night. Pastor Susan will you pray for my friend, the young woman asked. Of course, what's up? Her dad died. Oh, I am so sorry. When? They buried him today. What?? What, I thought, are you doing here in this frozen parking lot on this day of all days? But she was there and I was glad that I was too. So we prayed and I listened to how much her dad had meant to her. And we prayed again. And God met her. I can't remember her name but I will never forget her story.

It wasn't too many months later the merchants grew tired of the ever growning teen population. The police came and asked us to leave. So we left the parking lot that had been warmed by the love of Jesus that fall, winter and spring. And that summer it was colder.