‘Inn Between’
I Was Thinking…
In Gainesville, Georgia (not to be confused with Gainesville, Florida and that other football team) there is a sandwich deli named ‘Inn Between’. I don’t know the origin of its name but I do know that it is located between ‘Green’s Grocery’ and the ‘Dairy Queen’. It is your typical ‘Hole in the wall’ gathering spot for sandwiches and conversation. It is not like Burger King whose slogan of years ago was “Have it your way”. No, at the ‘Inn Between Deli’ you either have it their way or you don’t have it at all. The owners of this unique sandwich shop are fondly known as the ‘Sandwich Nazi’s’ (from the television sitcom of the 90’s ‘Seinfeld’). They prepare their sandwiches before the noon rush and you either get what they prepared or you don’t get!
I find the name of this deli interesting. Sort of like ‘Between, Georgia’ it implies that there is something on both sides. Between, Ga. is ‘between’ two major cities, Atlanta and Athens. It is also ‘between’ Loganville and Monroe. The 296 people that live in Between, Ga. have only the identity that they are ‘on the way to somewhere else’.
We are between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. We are ‘on our way to somewhere else’. What will 2018 hold for our world, our country, our communities and our lives? We move from a manger in Bethlehem to ‘Time Square’ and a glitzy ball drop. We look back and we look ahead…we are ‘between’.
‘Between’ is not necessarily a bad place to be. It can be a place of ‘reset’ and ‘reboot’. Or it can only be a place of traveling toward ‘somewhere else’. During this Christmas season and this week of ‘in between’ it is my prayer that we will pause and reset our lives toward a Christ-filled future. It is my prayer that we will not just leave the manger but carry it with us into God’s future for the world. It is my prayer that we will be on our way to ‘somewhere else’ carrying the gift of God’s gracious love as we travel.
May this week of ‘in between’ be filled with reflection and hope for a blessed future.
If you are ever in Gainesville, Georgia around lunch time, stop in at the ‘Inn Between Deli’ on Riverside Drive. However there is a warning…you must like mayonnaise because each and every sandwich has abundant portions ‘between’ the slices of bread (maybe that is where it got its name?). Happy New Year!
Always Thinking…
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