Out of Comfort Zone

     I told you a few days ago about how Bryce helped me experience Birmingham in a way I would not have without him. It wasn’t due solely to visiting the Civil Right Institute; it was also what we did after the museum. The museum is in the part of downtown that is populated mainly by blacks. While we were driving around, we agreed we were starving and needed to find something to eat. Bryce wanted to eat at a landmark. We drove by a very run down café called Nelsons. Bryce had remembered seeing something in the museum about Nelsons and declared that was where he wanted to eat. Not only would I have not eaten there by myself; I would not have eaten there unless he was as adamant as he was. I agreed I would step out of my comfort zone and eat at Nelson’s; after all I just went through the museum where I was ashamed for the way whites treated blacks because of the color of their skin. It was time to put actions to my beliefs. We walked by several black men sitting on the sidewalk to enter into the restaurant. We ordered at the counter and took a seat in a booth. We were the only whites in this establishment. A few men came by our booth and introduced themselves. We spoke to a man who was in a Kelly green suit with Kelly green shoes. I had on a lime green shirt and shoes, so I told him how we matched and how colorful we were. Everyone in the restaurant was laughing and seemed to respect us for not feeling we were too good to come into their hangout and eat. Then we walked down the street; Bryce had always wanted to get a razor shave from a real barbershop and there were plenty to choose from. We were walking by one of the barbershop and a man asked Bryce if he wanted a cut. Bryce said no but he wanted a shave and the guy said, “follow me”! I started to follow him into the barber shop and then I noticed that there were no women in the shop. I stopped in the door way and looked at another barber and asked if I could go in. He assured me it was okay. Once again, we were the only white people in this barber shop and now I am also the only woman. They were very polite to us and said, “God Bless You” when we paid. (Okay, I can’t help but tell you one additional part to this story. It has nothing to do with the meaning and only feeds my ego, but if you are an aging woman staring down 50, you will understand my excitement. The barber thought I was Bryce’s girlfriend or wife! I don’t care if he was lying, it made me feel good. I keep trying to get Bryce to call me ‘cougar mama’, but as of now I haven’t convinced him to do it! I am going to keep trying though!)
     This experience taught me what it feels like to be totally out of my comfort zone. It taught me what it feels like to stand out like a sore thumb. Also, it showed me how our fear can separate us from people different than us. Every person we encountered treated us no way but kind. The locals thought we were a little stupid for being in this part of town. I am not saying we should not be cautious in our safety but in this case it was nothing more than a culture difference between people of different colors.
     How do you think someone might feel the first time they visit a church? Maybe they have never been in any church before? Are they welcomed or are they ostracized for not fitting in? What are you doing to greet people and help people feel welcomed even if they are different? Or do you think they shouldn’t be in church until they clean up? I recently heard this statement: church isn’t a place you should have to clean up to go, it is a place you should go and let God clean you up! We should stand as a united body of Christ but not a uniformed body of Christ. If God wanted us all the same, He would have created us all the same!

Let each of you esteen and look upon and be concerned for not (merely) his own interests, but also each of the interest of others.  Let this same attitude and purpose and (humble) mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: (Let Him be your example in humility).

Philippians 2:4