Starbucks and High Schoolers

Man! Ladies! Is it REALLY May 15?

WHERE is this year going? So much has happened this year and the visions of what I would love to share overflow.  But, for today, I am sharing about an interesting connection God made for me in my sleep last night. I hope I can remember what He told me to write and share with all of you.

Well, for starters...I had a meeting with a colleague at Starbucks yesterday.  For the both of us, the day was hectic with mommy and business things. What was supposed to be a 10 AM meeting turned into a 4 PM meeting!

She graciously ordered me an Oprah Chai Tea Iced Latte. YUM! to the 16th power! We carried our drinks around the corner to find a table. The only seating available was right smack next to about 6 high school students that literally had 11 empty Starbucks cups on their table. Apparently high school is stressful!! HA!  As we initiated our meeting, their table conversation grew intensely loud, obnoxious, and typical of what you expect from high school students. And before you knew it, "SPLASH" and "YIKES" ....high pitched girly screeching screaming that should NEVER happen in public. The poor boy was SMOTHERED and COVERED in his friends very FULL CUP SUPER GRANDE coffee.  He was soaked from head to toe.

I must admit that my thought was, "they had it comin'!"  The young man stood up dripping with soaked flip flops and said,  "Awe man! I am soaked in something I absolutely HATE!"  ...

And last night it hit me.  This is EXACTLY how things go when our behavior departs from what God's word says is best for us. Not to be too dramatic, but in a lighter more practical sense, these kids knew that they were misbehaving. They were talking about sex and alcohol and looking around at me and my colleague in hopes we were not listening.  And then BOOM! The coffee spills everywhere - impacting every single person at the table and all of the Starbucks people who had to come and clean it up. The circumstances all started with a few steps of inappropriate behavior in public. And in a matter of just a few minutes, their entire fellowship RUINED because the behavior caused a spill that wrecked the whole party.

Ladies, is this not what happens when we start taking those tiny steps away from God's path and get immersed in our own ideas, visions, plans, and selfishness?  John 15:5 tells us “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."  But yet we push the boundaries between self and sacrifice to try and negotiate what we want versus what we know God is asking of us.  Maybe its shorts that are too short. Maybe its a conversation outside your marriage that is not appropriate.  Maybe its watching too much of The Bachelor. Maybe its gossip. Maybe its too much alcohol or too much time away from your children. Whatever "it" is, is apart from the vine and God's word about what happens apart from Him is TRUE and REAL...and OHhhhh the blessings we all forfeit because we do not do something as simple as giving Him the first part of our day and staying in His Word.

Ladies, the ONLY way we remain in the Vine is to strive to be Mary in a Martha world. It is spiritually impossible to position our hearts towards the Master if we are not nourishing it in the word. Matthew 15:18 talks about what spills from a persons mouth indicates what is really in their heart.  "But the things that come out of a person's mouth come from the heart, and these defile them."




And we know that "where our treasure is, there our heart is also". 

Ladies we have to keep the spill from happening. How do we gain and experience this sort of protection?  (1) Time on our knees in prayer (2) Time in the Word and (3) Time with wiser women that can counsel us (4)  And Repentance for the behaviors that cause us to spill.

The poor boy smothered and covered in coffee got up from the table to find that all of his friends had left him. No not one stayed around to help him clean up their mess. Isn't it funny when the mess happens how hard it is to find help? How hard it is to even remember how you got there. But one thing is certain, you will not forget the cleanup.  After several minutes, embarrassed, the young boy realized that now he had to go home, end his fun, and explain to his mom why his clothes were ruined while everyone else went on to their next adventure. 

Oh thank goodness for the hope we have in a relationship with Jesus Christ! Yes, ladies, we have HOPE! We always have the opportunity to put our eyes back on a Sovereign God who is above all!
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" 1 John 1:9. And may we never forget the clean up as we move forward to our future in the Vine. 

And I leave with you John 15:11
"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."



















*NOTE ON MY BOOK:
As you may know, the final copy of "Grace Abounds" distributed by Crossbooks, a division of LifeWay Christian Stores, has arrived at my house. The e-copy is $3.99 and the hard copy is $8.99. BUT WAIT!!! It is NOT finished yet. I am resubmitting the first 11 pages of my book as there were severe content changes. So there is a delay to market that hopefully will be overcome soon.