*

You’ve heard it said that we are the salt and light of the world.  Let us also be the coffee of the world.  It’s easy to get drawn in by the negativity surrounding us in the news, in conversation, and even in our church. News today focuses primarily on catastrophe and disaster.  Conversations too often focus on what is wrong in this world, church meetings can focus on what needs to be fixed, and even prayer requests tend to be about what is going poorly.  We’re not strangers to adversity, struggles, or hardships.  At times it seems that life is filled by pain and suffering.  So it’s understandable that at times we become like carrots or eggs.

There’s an inspirational story circulated on the internet with an unknown author about carrots, eggs, and coffee.  All three face the same adversity–boiling water—yet they react quite differently.  The carrots go in strong, hard and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, they soften and become weak. The eggs are fragile, their thin outer shell protecting a liquid interior. But, after sitting through the boiling water, their insides become hardened.  The coffee changes the water around it instead.  We need to be the coffee of this world.

When we’re placed in difficult circumstances we need to positively affect those around us and change our circumstances.  We don’t want to become weak and lose our values or wilt and become depressed.  Nor do we want to toughen with hardened hearts.  We should remain compassionate and loving and use our gifts to make positive differences in every life we touch.  When adversity is at its strongest (water is boiling hot!) the coffee bean will be at its best and positively changes its surroundings. It releases its aroma and turns water into coffee.  We need to do that too.  Okay, maybe we’re not going to turn water into coffee, but we need to stay firm in our beliefs, strong in our God, centered in Christ.  We need to rise to the challenge of making a positive influence on everything around us with our compassion, grace, faith, mercy, prayers, hospitality, love, and hope.  We can be Christ-like and recognize Christ in the world and change the world for the better.

Read Matthew 5:13-16, and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally!

Annie

* https://www.facebook.com/lessonslearnedinlife/photos/a.109979089073806.15189.109759299095785/463142417090803/?type=3&theater .  Accessed May 13, 2016.