Notice. Pray. Show Up. Love.

by Kristin Schell, from The Turquoise Table

 I was broken. I cried out for help. God showed up. — Kristin Schell

In the beginning, the day the unpainted picnic table arrived at our house, I posed a hypothesis: What if we were to take all of our backyard activities — our birthday parties, bubble blowing, messy art activities, barbecue suppers — and simply move them to the front yard? What would life look like if we lived as Front Yard People?

I had a hunch, but not a plan. There was no Front Yard People strategy, no 10-point Turquoise Table action plan, or hokey “Howdy, Neighbor” schedule. Heck, I didn’t really even think about it.

Everyone asks me about the first day, the very first moment at the Turquoise Table. It’s one of my favorite stories to tell — how Susan showed up just a few minutes after I sat at the table. But as much as I love that story and Susan, it is not the most significant moment. The defining moment happened long before the Turquoise Table was even a twinkle in my eye. It was the moment of surrender in the middle of the conference at the Austin Music Hall. When I was so desperate to hear from God with a plan, I begged Him to “SHOW ME! Show me what hospitality looks like to You. Show me how to love others in real community.”

I was broken. I cried out for help. God showed up.

It’s still the same today. Although gratefully not as dramatic. While there is no one-size-fits-all formula for life at the Turquoise Table, in my experience, there is a pattern: Notice the needs of others. Pray. Show up. Love.

Notice. Pray. Show up. Love.

Absolutely, there are days when it’s blazing hot outside or I am tired, but showing up — even fifteen minutes at a time — matters. Love adds up. Love spreads. Love builds community.

Of course, community was always there, ours for the taking. We simply needed a nudge, a new way to see through the busyness and distractions in life. A place to slow down, sit down, and be present.

How has God nudged you out into your community? Are you a Front Yard person? How has that changed your life and neighborhood?