I often like to write at my friendly local coffee bistro. It’s a cozy place and creates its own steady buzz which helps me concentrate. For some reason writing has always worked better for me in a public place like this. Maybe it’s just being surrounded by humanity that keeps things more real. I know it keeps me awake; that’s one of the main reason I go.

There’s one kid who works here who is convinced I am Steven Spielberg. I tell him that Steven Spielberg has hair, but he keeps calling me Steven anyway. (Actually with a baseball cap on and my current goatee, there is a slight resemblance.) So I humor him.

The music in this place is always different. It depends on who’s working. But regardless, three minutes to 11:00 PM, whoever is working puts on “Closing Time” by Semisonic: “Closing time/Open all the doors and let you out into the world…” and cranks it up so you have no choice but to pack up and leave. I have to admit, it’s kind of a nice wrap on the day.

One day this week, though, “Jesus Is Just Alright with Me” by the Doobie Brothers came on and I had to digress for a moment. In my younger, more Pharisaical days, I was always suspicious of songs like this. Why did they write this? Are they talking about the Jesus of the scriptures? Are they making fun of anything? Are any of them Christians?

Now I don’t care about any of these dynamics. I just worship. I’m just glad that the Holy Spirit let this out into the world. I only care that the sound of His name is seeping through the bars and clubs of the world – that playlists are playing it and that my little barista brought it to my attention this week so I could bring it to you.

So plug your earphones in, click on the picture below and raise a coffee cup to whoever wrote it for whatever reason it came into being. I’m just glad it’s here.

Jesus is just alright
Jesus is just alright with me
Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright, oh yeah
Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright

I don’t care what they may say
I don’t care what they may do
I don’t care what they may say
Jesus is just alright, oh yeah
Jesus is just alright

Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright, oh yeah
Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright
I don’t care what they may know
I don’t care where they may go
I don’t care what they may know
Jesus is just alright, oh yeah

Jesus, he’s my friend;
Jesus, he’s my friend
He took me by the hand
Led me far from this land
Jesus, he’s my friend

Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright, oh yeah
Jesus is just alright with me, Jesus is just alright
I don’t care what they may say,
I don’t care what they may do
I don’t care what they may say,
Jesus is just alright, oh yeah