It’s 7AM. It’s dark. Winter is coming. So it’s chilly. The street lights are still on. The Shenango Valley is waking up. Most lights in businesses along State Street are off.

But the lights at Panera Bread are on. It’s Wednesday. The 1st Church Men’s Group is meeting at Panera. Some employees arrive early to prepare and turn the lights on for us and other “early risers.”

I park in the dark parking lot and walk to the door. The lights say “welcome.” A few people are already there at their tables. The line to order a coffee and a pastry or breakfast sandwich is short. Things are not too busy at 7AM.

So I place my order: “Small coffee and a sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich. No aioli please.” I pay, fill my cup with coffee and wait for my breakfast sandwich. It’s a routine by now.

And standing there is the manager. She has been at the store since “who knows when” to prepare the store and employees for the day. And she greets me with a smile and a “Good morning. How’s your day going?” I am surprised – pleasantly surprised. There are probably lots of reasons for her to be less than “chipper.” But she has gone out of her way to pass on a little happiness. And it invites me to do that same. And it doesn’t happen just once; it happens every other Wednesday morning at 7AM when I arrive for the Men’s Group.

Motel 6 and Tom Bodet used to have a commercial with the tag line “Leaving the light on for you.” It communicated welcome; a welcome light for you at Motel 6 whenever you arrive. It was a good commercial.

And I think that manager at Panera is doing a similar thing. But rather than “leaving the light on,” she’s “turning the light on.” Of courage she’s physically turning the lights on in the store. And they shine brightly on a cold, dark Wednesday morning at 7AM. But in addition to that, she’s turning on “the light of kindness and hospitality.” And that too shines brightly in a day when there’s very little of either. And I give thanks for such a simple but important act.

November is stewardship month. This year we’re invited to “live doxology.” That means living in ways to give thanks and share thanks. It means paying attention to all the blessings that come our way (like a kind greeting at 7AM), and passing an unexpected blessing on to someone else. In a way it’s “turning a light on” for each other. And there’s a lot of quiet joy in that.

“You are the light of the world… Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14, 16)

Sharing 7AM Greetings,

Glenn