Carrot, Egg or Coffee

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her, She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling.. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.. 
 
    Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans . She let them sit and boil; without saying a word. 
 
    In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see." 

    "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. 
 
    Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. 

    Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?" 
 
    Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water. 

    "Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?" 

    Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? 

    Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? 

     Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean? 
 
    The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches. 
 
    When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling, everyone around is crying.

May we all be COFFEE!!!!!!

What is going on?

    I am afraid of the dark! No not the dark when the sun goes down

but the “darkness”  that is in this world. Not afraid in the way of hidding in fear, but of how easy it is for people to be drawn to it or pulled to it. Just like the children of Israel, they were delivered out of bondage ..and because they didn’t see ,it the promise “NOW” they lost their belief their faith and wanted to turn back to Egypt !!! The very place they had been mistreated, misused .. a place of no hope, a place of bondage and death.

What was Gods great requirements??? Deut. 10:12  Fear God, walk in His ways, Love Him, serve Him with all your heart and mind and all your being.

I was talking with a lady in my church who was being abused by her boyfriend. She was being abused some physically, but she was being severely abused verbally and mentally. The thing that amazed me the most was that even though her boyfriend was abusing her and lying to her regularly, she still continued to believe him and defend him. I remember thinking, I will never understand why women keep going back or are drawn to the same type of men or people over an over. Not just people but old life stile .. smoking, drinking, sleeping around, drugs, etc.. darkness.

"Why is it that people will submit themselves to an evil person, but the same person will resist believing a God who has never lied and who always tells the truth?"

Walking by faith should be easy. However, it is a struggle for many. From early age we are trained to believe what we see. In fact, a familiar phrase used by many is this. "I will believe it when I see it." But for the Christian walking by faith, it’s actually quite the opposite. For us, we’ll see it when we believe it.

A truth we find threaded through God’s Word is this. Everything a Christian receives, he must believe for it first. Before we receive salvation, we must believe for salvation. God searches over the earth looking for those who will believe Him. And when He finds someone who believes Him, then He rewards them because God is a rewarder of those who believe that He is and diligently seek Him.

So the key to 2 Corinthians 5:7 is this. We must live our lives based on the truth of God’s Word instead of the facts that are found in the world. We act on the promise instead of the problem. We walk in the truth instead of deception and we walk in the light instead of darkness.

Walking by faith means that we base everything we do in life upon what God says because we believe Him. In fact, we believe Him so deeply that everything we say, everywhere we go, every action we take, and every thought in our mind aligns itself with what God says.

When did Old become …..

…a burden ..a disease …a embarrassment …less then everyone else …of no value … someone with no feelings …

Ok, maybe we slow you down, make more work for you sometimes … but there was a time ..nine months before you were born your Mother carried you .. she did it alone .. you made her sick at times … you caused her pain ,,,then she walked through the valley of death to bring you into this world only too have to do everything for you … feed you ..change you ..bath you .. dress you … carry you for you couldn’t walk …after a few years of caring for you .. teaching you ..running you where you needed or wanted to go … seeing to your every need as best we could ..your dad & I ..have some how become a burden … a disease …an embarrassment ..of little or no value …not to smart …someone with no feelings ….

You can be alone in a room full of people ..even Wal Mart

Boy did this one touch my heart ... there is too much of this going on around us and we don't even notice. The other day a lady came in Wal Mart pushing a elderly lady in a wheel chair she stopped just inside the door ...told the lady in the chair I'll be back in a little while ..your just to heavy to push around.
I was checking out and just couldn't walk off for some reason... the longer she set there you could see the fear on her face .. now I couldn't tell you what was going on in her mind for sure ..but I could see the look on her face and the fear in her eyes .. so I parked my cart and set by her on a bench just out side of the beauty shop...I started to talk to her and she reached out for my hand. I smiled at her and her sweet little hand gently patted my arm ...everyone needs a touch.

The Wooden Bowl 
I guarantee you will remember the tale of the Wooden Bowl tomorrow, a week from now, a month from now, A year from now.

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year-old grandson.
The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered
The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and
Failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor.
When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. 
The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. 
'We must do something about father,' said the son.
'I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor.' 
So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.
There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner.
Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl. 
When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone.
Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. 
The four-year-old watched it all in silence.

One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor.
He asked the child sweetly, 'What are you making?' Just as sweetly, the boy responded,
'Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up. 
' The four-year-old smiled and went back to work. 
The words so struck the parents so that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done. 
That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table.
For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason,
Neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled. 
On a positive note, I've learned that, no matter what happens, how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. 
I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles four things:
A rainy day, the elderly, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. 
I've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as making a 'life..' 
I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. 
I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands.You nee d to be able to throw something back sometimes.
I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you
But, if you focus on your family, your friends, the needs of others,
Your work and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you 
I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. 
I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. 
I've learned that every day, you should reach out and touch someone. 
People love that human touch -- holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. 
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.