A Carrot, An Egg, and a Cup of Herbal Tea

Several years ago, I read an email and thought how the content is one of those parables Jesus might have taught. It’s a message that can help us deal with whatever life throws our way.

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 that as soon 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 a boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed a herbal tea bags. 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 tea out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and tea," 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 tea. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich herbal flavors. The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity ...boiling water. But 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 tea in the bag was 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 herbal tea?"

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 you have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, became hardened and stiff which impacts your friends, and family? Does your shell look the same, but on the inside are you bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? Or are you like the tea bag? The tea actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain and frustration. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the herbal tea, when things are at their worst, you get better and look to the Lord to help change the situation around you.

When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, the Lord’s help elevates you to another level. How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg, or herbal tea? 

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. By living your life in a daily relationship with the Lord you’ll be the one who is smiling when this life is over.

For me the tea is in the boiling water and changing the situation every minute.   

Can’t you smell the tea aroma around you?

Peace in the Valley

Today is a new day and I will rejoice in it.  

Easy words to say but much harder to do when you get up early and the only song that comes to your head is "Peace in the Valley".  The words, "Well I'm tired and I'm so weary, but I must toil on" is not a great way to get your day started.  

Our pastor has been teaching on seeking God's Favor and noted that it is mentioned 118 times in the Bible.  So each day I petition the Lord to give me His Favor, peace, and direction for the day and for me to demonstrate it with faith.  

But in trying to get a new product into the market I find business events put a strain on your faith, your life, and your family.  I have asked, "What am I missing along the way, Lord?"  And then I wait for Him to come into the office and tell me flat out.   Not being factious but just seeking answers and direction.

Looking at a first business email sent in 2006, I realized that I have been striving to sell our new products for four years as of today.  Where is the success?  Why haven't things sold?  What am I doing wrong?  What is it that God wants me to do?   And the questions go on and on.  

I have confided in a mentor to get his view and he said that he sees no place that I have gone against the Lord, as doors open and then close in the business environment.  Nor have I done things without sound business principles.  Yet the reality of today weighs heavily on my heart as I seek what the Lord has in store for our family.  

Nevertheless, I seek the face of the Lord to give our family direction, understanding, and peace.  I continue in faith so that we can have a story of encouragement for everyone some day.  Yes, that Peace in the Valley to be a strength for those starting down the same road.

It's tough being transparent but the Lord calls us all to grow and help each other in that way.  May you have that peace and Favor from the Lord today and every day!

The Least of These

It all started on Sunday afternoon.  While working on landscaping, the dogs went crazy barking and clawing at the fence.  In the distance I saw a small gold and white cat on one of our rocks.  I didn't think anything about it but soon the kitten was coming down our driveway just crying loudly.   I finished the seeding of grass and sat down in the chiar.  This kitten was scared but bold enough to come next to me and rub against me.


Soon the kitten was up on my lap just begging to be petted.  You see our area is a great place where people drop their animals instead of trying to get them a home or take them to the shelter.  We have four adopted dogs because two of them were dropped by our home and they were named within the hour by Lynnette.   Our problem with this kitten is that one of our dogs would love to kill anything smaller than her that moves inside the fence.







Therefore I am writing this as I wait for the animal shelter to open.  The kitten is helping me type this blog and has been laying on my lap. 

All this made me think about the passage where the Lord says that you do it unto the least of these of these, you have done this unto me.    I know He meant other people and I hope that each one of us can find someone who needs our help.  But right now I hope that taking this kitten to a place where it can have a great home and not be killed by dogs for the pleasure of it will give another person peace and contentment from such a loving animal.

Who are to helping this week?  Maybe it is adopting a pet that can give you love all the time and not demand anything.  All Love - All the Time         What a concept!  Sounds like our Savior doesn't it?

A Single Request

 Luke 18: 40-4 "Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 'What do you want me to do for you?' 'Lord, I want to see,' he replied. Jesus said to him, 'Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.'"

Even though it has been several months since Christmas, I'm reminded of the Christmas lists my young children would give me on Thanksgiving Day. It almost seemed as if it was a competition to see who could have the longest list. Chad would tape pages together while Stephanie would write on both sides of the paper and along the margins.

One would have thought that after receiving only a fraction of what they wanted year in and year out that they would have learned to ask for just a few items. But as my daughter says today, "No matter what I put down on the list, Dad got me something not on the list. Something I really needed."

We make shopping lists, wish lists, want lists, needs lists, prayer lists, and sometimes lists of lists. My wife, Lynnette is well known for her lists. I depend on them to get things done in proper order but I am not a list person. That is, until I am required to make a list.

In today's scripture, the man could have asked Jesus for any number of things. But there was only one request. "Lord, I want to see." Our prayer life shouldn't be limited to a list of our "wants". Instead we should approach our quiet time with thanksgiving, praise and love for God. Then we should lift up the needs of others in health, safety, or any issue they might have. Lastly our needs should be expressed. 

More importantly, we should just talk to Jesus as a friend and build on our wonderful relationship knowing He will supply all our needs.  But can you keep it to a single request?

"Did you Hear What I Said"

“Did you hear what I said”, was a common phase I heard a lot as I grew up. Teenagers have learned the art of "tuning out” parents. We are old, we are dumb, we are out of touch, and we are an embarrassment to them.

Therefore they feel justified to develop selective hearing. The trouble is that many times that rolls over into adulthood. Being an ADHD person, I am many times guilty of hearing everything someone says, but processing only part of the information. It drives Lynnette crazy when she asks the question, “Did you hear what I said?” My brain heard every word and I can repeat back every word. Yet I have only processed part of the words and very little of the point of the communication.

We may hear what is being said, but we are sometimes too occupied in our own world by continuing to read the newspaper or watch whatever is on television.

I think God has a great sense of humor. He created us to be drawn to someone who may have a personality that is opposite to our own. What we found cute or attractive during the dating process becomes a communication issue after marriage. A detailed person and a outgoing carefree person can raise a lot of issues throughout the relationship.

It can develop to the point that we when communicating we tune each other out. Then we see couples going to desperate measures just to get the other person’s attention. When in a conversation, I use pronouns, instead of nouns, that can mean nothing to some people but I know exactly what I am trying to say. My weird mind had processed the data and in some cases my mouth expects other people to catch up.

Strangely enough both my children follow where I am headed when talking about a subject. They just say, “I know what he is saying, it’s Dad.” But this area of communication is something that I have to work on daily in marriage and business.

How do you communicate with your friends, spouse, and others? Do the differences in personalities contribute to a conflict? How can you be a better communicator? Do you really listen to what others are saying?

In this area of my life, it is a constant conscious effort to work on being clearer in what I say, and what I mean when I speak words, while at the same time listening to what the other person says.

An old philosophy question in college was “If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?”  Talking to yourself can never be construed as communication. That may be why couples are so often desperate for real communication.

Men, just because your wife is around the children all day does not mean she has ample communication for the day. She needs to converse with you. As one lady put it, “I need an adult conversation.” Communication will never happen if we are the only one talking or we are never listening.

The Lord talks to us daily through people and His creation. All He wants is for you to communicate with him. Our prayer lives can reflect how well we communicate.

Do we just tell God what is our selfish agenda or do we listen for Him to show us the life he wants us to live? Did you hear what the Lord said today?

Being a Hybrid

Well it’s spring again and for many people it is time to begin planting seeds for herbs and vegetables. Our family has a strain of green bean seeds passed from generation to generation which are called, “pure” seeds. These climbing beans give a lot of fruit when they are kept away from all the other bean seeds.

During the year, we would save one healthy plant for seeds for the next year. I was told by my dad to never plant these seeds next to any hybrid seeds. I had read that hybrid seeds were seeds developed by laboratories to give high yields and are pest, drought, and mold resistant. Therefore, as a young man on his own I did not listen to my father, and planted the pure seeds next to hybrids. The first year I had great results. I saved some seeds from that crop and the next year planted them and got good results. It was not until four years later that I realized that my dad was quite a smart man.

The plants were green and large and loaded with bloom. I gloated about what the harvest was going to be that year. When the bloom feel off there were no beans. The plants remained green but there was no crop. It was my dad who reminded me of how the hybrid seeds were produced. You take seeds from pure strains and mix them to get the hybrid. While the laboratories will develop a better seed for this year, you can not keep planting those seeds every year and get crops. The hybrid runs out.

The Lord created us as “one of a kind”, but we often take that to the point of thinking we can be pure in our lives and not need the Lord. It may be a season in our life or it could be a lifestyle. Nevertheless, we think we are like the pure seeds. If we keep ourselves away from television, radio, other people, and the world, we might remain pure. But, that’s not God plan for our lives.

When the Lord comes into our hearts, we become a part of Him. We are now hybrids that were bought with the price of Jesus’ grace and love for us on the cross. The trouble is we never get our lives renewed daily to keep the hybrid link strong. Instead we try and do things on our own time and time again until our strength is gone.

Make sure that you take the time each day to read, pray and just talk to the Lord. You be amazed how strong the hybrid relationship can be and help others desire such a hybrid relationship. 

Luke 18:27 . . . "What is impossible with men is possible with God."

Serving and Loving it

Have you ever walked into a restaurant and waited at the podium to be seated only to not be noticed? When you finally get someone’s attention, they make you feel as if you are an inconvenience for them?   To top that off you have to flag someone down just to get a glass of water. What do you do when you encounter such poor service?

We had an experience like that not too far from where we live. It took forever to get seated. They ignored us for some time until I asked for our waitress. It seemed like we were bothering her just to give her our order. Next, after waiting for twenty-five minutes with no food, we got up, found the manager and advised her of the situation, and left.  

To this day, Lynnette and I comment about that restaurant every time we drive past. People feel more at home when in finding themselves in a strange setting have friendly service. A few years ago, we visited a church at Easter with my daughter and grand-daughters.

 First, the sign on the front of the church said the services started at 10:45 a.m. We were walking into the church about five minutes early, but heard singing in the main worship area. An usher was guarding the door and so I asked when the services had started. He noted that they had started at 10:30. I said but your sign in front says 10:45. He laughed and said,  ”I guess we need to change that someday.” The church was filled for the Easter service and so I asked the usher where we should sit. He stuck his head inside the worship area and said to us, “just anywhere you can find a place”.

We were strangers to the setting, but I pushed my way down the aisle only to get looks from people who were sitting on the outside of the aisle and would not move in for us. Finally, all six of us had to climb over several people just to get inside.

Since the worship leader was singing gospel songs that I knew, I quickly began singing along. What I did not know was in that church the leader is the only one to sing the verses and the congregation sings the chorus. Not knowing the rules and guidelines, I began to sing away. You should have seen the looks that I got from people in front of me.

That ended my worship experience for the morning.

Have you ever had similar experiences? Have you ever wondered what visitors may think when they arrive at church? Are they being served and do they feel comfortable? Think about the poor restaurant service or the seemingly unfriendly church.

In Ephesians 5, we are called to “Watch what God does and then do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents” (The Message). Christ came to serve. As the church grows we must learn to serve more. A wise pastor advised us that we need to give our lives away every day. If we are to be imitators of Christ, then we need to start at home, at work, at school, and at church.

Happiness comes in service to others because it takes the focus off our own issues and problems. If you’re looking for happiness in your church home, try giving your life away in service to the Lord and others.

Funny, but it took five years and a new electric sign for that church to change the sign for the starting time of worship. Why don’t look at your church as a first time guest and see where you personally can improve and serve.