Something New Brewing

Over the past several months I have spent hundreds of hours in coffee shops. I am certainly not an expert, YET! It takes much more than time and coffee consumption to become an expert. I would consider myself a “sissy” when it comes to my coffee habits since I still use cream and sugar (at least I don’t drink smoothies). I am also very simple, I usually just go with regular old coffee, although some days I will feel a little more on the wild side and try a gourmet flavor if it is available.
 
Before we can fully appreciate the taste and smell of a good cup of coffee, I think it is important to understand the process that it takes to go from plant to cup. So I checked in with Wikipedia for some insight….
 
A coffee plant usually starts to produce fruit 3-4 years after it is planted and it is from these flowers that the fruits of the plant (commonly known as coffee cherries) appear, with the first useful harvest possible around 5 years after planting.
 
In most countries, the coffee crop is picked by hand, a labor-intensive and difficult process. As of 2003, payment per basket is between $2 and $10 with the overwhelming majority of the labourers receiving payment at the lower end. An experienced coffee picker can collect up to 6-7 baskets a day.
 
There are numerous steps that are taken to process the fruit into a bean such as: washing, drying, milling, hulling, polishing, sorting, grading and aging. 
 
Following this process the coffee beans are then roasted and packaged. Finally before you can add cream and sugar to your steaming cup of coffee, the beans must be ground and brewed. 
 
Before today, I had not thought about the lengthy process involved in having a cup of coffee. At the risk of sounding like I have had a little too much coffee today, there are many similarities between the process of making a good cup of coffee and the process of spiritual growth.
 
This week, I would like to hear from you! Yes, the weekly e-mail is now changing to become (Drum Roll Please…….) interactive. I would like to share your thoughts next week…..I promise not to embarrass you in any way. For this to happen, I need you to REPLY with your thoughts. I hope you have your best week yet!

Banana Bread Scare

So yesterday morning I was at McDonalds meeting with a friend and a strange thing happened. As we were sitting in a booth, an elderly lady came over and offered us what was left of her banana nut bread. It was only three pieces in a plastic bag on a plate. As quickly as she arrived, she left and we were both left looking at the “gift.”
 
Stories of poisoned Halloween candy entered my mind and I quickly blew them off because of the age and demeanor of the lady. After we finished up, I asked my friend if he wanted it and he didn’t really care for it so I took it with me back to the office. 
 
After studying for several hours I began to get hungry so I broke open the package, looked closely at it, smelled it and took a bite. It tasted great and everything seemed fine, so I waited a few more minutes and ate a second piece and was half-way into the last piece when all of a sudden I started to feel tingly and my head began to spin. I immediately started to worry that I had been poisoned. I stood up, took a sip of water and then everything seemed fine so I sat down. Within 30 seconds, I started another wave of reactions so I stood up, walked next door to another friend’s office and told him that I was feeling really weird and if I pass out it was because of the banana bread. He put his hand on my rapidly beating heart and within a short time it began to slow down and then it was over.
 
I threw the rest of the bread away and made a silent commitment never to eat bread from a stranger again….NO MATTER WHAT!!!! I really do not have a great explanation for my little episode besides that it was scarier since I had just eaten bread from someone I didn’t know. From the beginning I had distrust for the bread, but I chose to ignore it.  
 
As I ponder the implications, I am reminded that this is often the way we act spiritually. When a temptation is put before us we rationalize it because we desire it. There are times when I commit a sin knowing in my head full well that it is not right, and all the while rationalizing that it will be ok this one time…..With this in mind I am very thankful that when I made a foolish choice I was able to go next door to someone who would help me through my problem.
 
This Sunday, the service will center on the church and membership. Specifically we will study Acts 2:38-47 and hopefully get a picture of the first century church and the responsibilities of each individual member. One of the great values of the church is that we are “called out” to help each other. Even when we make wrong choices we can be certain that our brothers and sisters will be there for us as soon as we ask for help. I hope you have a great weekend….and stay away from banana bread!

Bodies Revealed

Yesterday was Leigh-Ann and my 9th Anniversary. It is hard to believe how fast time travels. As I was going about my day, I recalled the many reasons I am blessed by her every day. She is honest, spiritual, hilarious, stable, balanced, sensible, simple, beautiful, faithful and very loyal. You are probably like, “OK, Troy’s in the doghouse for something.” Actually I’m not :) ……
 
We had a great evening celebrating our years of marriage. It was Leigh-Ann's idea to go to the “Bodies Revealed” exhibit down at Union Station. I would say I walked away with mixed emotions. It wasn’t as gross as I anticipated; it also wasn’t as large as I anticipated. We shared our laughs at some crazy stuff and we also shared amazement at the development of the human body. We were constantly wondering who those people were….I mean, it is kind of weird to imagine, but every body on display at one time was more than just a body. They were a person with dreams and ambitions, they were a soul with a sense of morality, they were someone’s child and friend.
 
The physical bodies were truly remarkable to observe. We were able to see skeletons from every different angle, every organ cut up in a variety of ways, blood vessels, cartilage, tendons and teeth. We were especially interested in the part that highlighted the development of the fetus (since Leigh-Ann is due at the end of March). It would be a humongous step of faith to assume that the human body came into existence by mere chance…..there is no doubt in my mind that we have an Intelligent Designer. 
 
There are many similarities between the physical and spiritual. According to John 3, our own spiritual lives began with a “New Birth” experience. There are people that spent time with us and invested in our lives to help us grow. As babies in Christ we often do not realize the investment of those who take on the role of spiritual parenthood. It is only when we are matured enough to mentor babies in Christ that we realize the effort involved. 
 
This week the sermon is from 2 Timothy 2:1-7 and the title is, “A Call for Spiritual Growth.” We will spend time studying the challenge from the Apostle Paul to his son in the faith, Timothy to grow spiritually. 
 
For those of you who are a part of the New Life body, I hope you will be able to hear the message on Sunday or at least listen to it online.
 
No matter who we are or what we are doing, we all have the opportunity for spiritual growth. So, what in your life indicates spiritual growth?

Weed Management

Weeds are a pain in the neck. I have just noticed, over the past few days, that my lawn is getting more and more of them. Unfortunately, this leaves me with a few choices:

  * Ignore them and hope they go away
  * Learn to like them and hope all my neighbors move away
  * Eliminate them and make them go away

This morning I was out running and noticed that in addition to my yard, the weeds had also attacked the land around the trail….more than just a few, annoying weeds, acres of weeds. Several months ago, the land around the path was all dirt. The city decided to plant grass, and within a few weeks the entire area was green with brand new blades of grass. Over the past several days, the new blades of grass have been overcome by BIG, MEAN weeds.
 
I have a few observations about this scenario:

  * What began as a few weeds has turned into a field of weeds
  * The reason for the field of weeds is that no one took care of the few weeds
  * The field of weeds will never be overcome by lush, green grass that decides to grow again apart from some outside help (i.e. weed killer, grass seed, fertilizer, water, etc. etc.)
  * I don’t know of anyone that enjoys looking at weeds (except maybe a crazy botanist or two :)). 
  * It is nearly impossible and certainly not enjoyable to play in a field of weeds
  * I cannot think of any value that weeds bring to real estate

So what happens when we allow “weeds” into our heart? Within a short time we can become a “field of weeds” and turn into an eyesore that brings no value to the body of Christ.  
 
You may be wondering, “What are some examples of weeds that can grow in a person’s heart?” That is exactly what I hope you are wondering about…. We each have the responsibility to look for individual weeds in our hearts before they consume our life. When we notice them we must go for some outside (i.e. God) help to get rid of them. 
 
I hope you are able to see your weeds and I hope you are willing to go for outside help. Meanwhile, I still have to do something about the weeds in my yard......