The Connection Corner

A Couch, a Coffee, and a Change

Luke 6:36 — “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”

Some lessons from God don’t start in a church. They start behind a gym, yelling at a stranger in a junked-out car.

The sun wasn’t even up, but Jeff’s blood was already boiling. There it was: a man’s silhouette under a ragged blanket. Again.

He banged on the window with a flat palm.

“I said this yesterday. You can’t sleep here! I’m not running a shelter. I’m running a business.”

The kid jumped, wide-eyed, and climbed out without a word. He disappeared into the trees like smoke. Jeff stood there for a minute, jaw clenched, muttering all the way back inside.

The next morning? Same car. Same blanket. Same boiling anger.

By day five, Jeff wasn’t even surprised. His feet thundered as he marched toward the car, already rehearsing what to say when—

Do you remember when you had nothing?

The words weren’t audible, but they might as well have been shouted.

He did remember… how close had he had come to losing it all. The gym. His sanity. His hope.

So, he turned around, marched back inside, filled a Styrofoam cup with hot coffee, and carried it out.

“I brought you something.”

The young man sat up slowly, blinking. Confused.

“What’s your name?”

“…Brian.”

They talked a while. After hearing Brian’s story, Jeff offered him a job. Brian agreed, but showed up hours late. This time he didn’t let it slide.

“Job’s off the table,” Jeff said. “But I’ll help you. You can shower here and sleep on the couch. But I’m not jumping in the hole with you. You’ve got to want out.”

The weeks passed, and there were more slip-ups and missed chances. But Jeff didn’t walk away. Every time he looked at Brian, he saw himself, just younger and in need of someone steady.

And do you know what? Eventually, Brian did find a steady, meaningful job, but what he gained more was the confidence that someone cared about him when all he had was a tattered blanket and a place to sleep in the back of someone else’s car.

When you think about Brian and Jeff today, I hope you will remember someone else needs what God gave you, too. Could it be grace? Patience? Or a second chance?

And when you meet someone stuck where you once were, don’t yell. Don’t look away. Just lean in, lend a hand, and offer a little hope and a cup of coffee.

June 18, 2025/by Linda Meyers

The Day Hope Came Back

Daily Devotional, Linda Meyers

Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

“Enclosed is a check to sponsor one day of Hope. I will be mailing checks to you monthly.”

That is what Susan wrote on the card.

Hope. The word alone brought a lump to her throat.

Hope was her Cocker Spaniel. She had a coat like caramel and eyes that always seemed to understand. For years, she was with Susan for everything. Walks in the early morning. Long afternoons on the porch. The simple parts of life no one else really saw, she was there for them all.

When she passed away in January, she did not know what to do with the stillness. It was more than missing her. It was grief.

For a while, the house felt unfamiliar. She would catch herself looking for Hope and reaching for the leash. Listening for her feet on the floor.

But even in the ache, Susan noticed something. Each morning, she would turn on 88.7 The Cross. And somehow, the words that came through the speakers gave her something she did not know she needed. Not a distraction. Not a fix. Just a reminder that hope still had a place in her story.

Now, by giving she wants to share that same hope with others.

You see, real hope is not sentimental. It is a Person who shows up when life falls apart. He is present on the good days and the bad. His name is Jesus, and if you have known Him in that way, you know He is worth sharing.

Is there someone who needs the same hope that carried you? You may not know their name. But just like Susan, you can still be part of the reason they keep going.

Will you give today so someone else can experience the same hope Susan found?

Your gift makes it possible for 88.7 The Cross to be there in the quiet, in the heartache, in the moments that matter most. Just like Susan, someone is listening—grieving, searching, reaching for a reason to keep going.

And your generosity can be the reason they hear exactly what they need.

Give hope. Share Jesus. Sponsor a day—or whatever you can—because real hope is worth passing on.

GIVE NOW!

June 17, 2025/by Linda Meyers

Banjo Strings and Blessings

Daily Devotional, Tammi Arender

Colossians 3:14 — “And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”

There’s a kind of joy you don’t plan for. It just shows up with paper plates and a guitar. That is how it was sitting outside under the pines at one of my family’s old-fashioned pickin’ and grinnins’.

I was across the table from Uncle Benny. He was working his way through the same question for the fifth a. I kept answering him, because what would be the point in correcting him. Right?

The little ones were darting around barefoot, chasing each other with sticky fingers, dripping popsicle juice everywhere. Someone’s toddler squealed with laughter, and a cousin hollered something about fire ants. If I remember right, a few of the grown-ups rolled their eyes when somebody forgot the ice. Bless it.

The heat was doing what Southern heat does. I kept swatting mosquitoes and trying to smooth down my hair, but before I could even be bothered, the music started.

One by one, a guitar, a banjo, and eventually a karaoke machine made their way out. People gathered near the porch, clapping and singing—some on key, some not even close. It was wonderful.

I couldn’t tell you what we ate that day, probably hot dogs and potato salad, but I remember the sound of my aunt’s laugh. I remember the cold bite of watermelon, and I remember feeling so full, not from food, but from the people around me.

When I think of those “pickin’ and grinnin’” days, my heart aches a little in that sweet way. I want to go back. I want to relive the moments where everything else fell away and all that mattered were the people right in front of me.

So, today, I’m choosing to live like every day is a pickin’ and grinnin’. I won’t wait for the weather to be perfect or for someone else to bring the ice. I want to bring my own glad heart, be interruptible, laugh, and sing off-key.

There’s a lawn chair waiting. Maybe you’d like to join me?

June 16, 2025/by Tammi Arender