Valley pastor makes going to the coffee shop a religion

PHOENIX - Tuesdays at Mama Java's Coffee House in Phoenix are a religion for some customers, especially Debra Avery.

"My worst fear is that they'll close," said Avery.

Every week you'll find Avery on Facebook, Twitter and fellowshipping with faithful customers about faith. She is the lead pastor at Palo Christi Presbyterian Church. Each Tuesday she takes her pulpit from Paradise Valley to this hometown coffee shop at 36th Street and Indian School Road.

"I read a long time ago, if you really want to grow your ministry you need not sit in a church all day long," smiled Avery.

Since Mama Java's opened three years ago Pastor Avery's been a regular.

"Every Tuesday I'm here," Avery explained. "My parishioners know they can find me here, my friends know they can find me here, and now I've made friends with some of the regulars."

Pastor Avery, who prefers a 16-ounce non-fat cappuccino, had no idea her own faith was about to be tested.

"It's tough times in Arizona," Pastor Avery said. She shared with ABC15 News that her husband's job fell through shortly after they moved to Phoenix two and half years ago from Illinois.

"We've lost our home in Illinois. So we've learned to make sacrifices," Pastor Avery said with disappointment.

Her two children are also making sacrifices and they're learning first hand what it's like living in a state with a jobless rate at it's highest level in nearly three decades.

"They ask questions like, 'Hey mom can I have money for dot dot dot?' And I say, 'Well not this week,' and we work through it and I think that gives them a real sense of what's possible and what's important," she said.

At least every Tuesday, what's important for Pastor Avery is finding that perfect blend of good coffee and good friends.