Not a Victim #9 The Egg, the Carrot, and the Coffee Bean

Taken the end of 2020…in Yosemite area…during a pandemic, after wild fires, wind storms, and insect infestation. Sad, yet new life and beauty begins again…

There’s this object lesson that I’ve held on to for years. In fact I’m sure I’ve written about it in my previous blogs. This object lesson is a very popular story. 

The first time I heard this story was when I was teaching our youth group at our church, years ago. As a teacher, I think I learned more from this lesson than the youth did. In fact, I would be surprised if any of them even remembered this particular lesson. But it is an object lesson that can be applied to so many things in our life. When originally teaching this, the lesson I was trying to convey was that God loves us and uses us no matter what our backgrounds are.

It also applies to what can we, as people, do with our attitudes, our dispositions, and our outlook on life in general. 

In the setting of this blog I want to emphasize the importance of how we, as so called victims, can use our experiences to grow and help others rather than let our experiences destroy us and those around us. 

If you don’t already know what object lesson I’m rambling on about let me give a quick synopsis.

Put a carrot, an egg and a coffee bean in a pot of water. Put the pot on the stove and turn on the heat. Let the water come to a boil and let it simmer for about 15 minutes. 

All three were put into the water at the same time. 

All three were put through the same type of external treatment. 

All three endure this treatment for the exact same amount of time. 

Take the pot off the heat and observe.

The carrot is soft and mushy. The heat of the moment took everything out of the carrot and it was left with nothing and falls apart.

The egg is hard. Take the shell off and the heat of the moment leaves it hard and resistant to its surroundings.

But the coffee bean. The coffee bean has remained unchanged, yet it has made its surroundings wonderful to smell and drink. The very source that made the carrot mushy and the egg hard, the water, has turned into an enjoyable beverage to be enjoyed by all.

Do you get why this is so profound? Maybe it’s just me, but I think of this lesson often. The essence of this keeps me focused on Gods purpose for me. It helps me focus on the positive of the negative around us. 

A person recently jumped down my throat for mentioning how some good has come out of this recent pandemic. Actually that person is the very person who inspired this blog subject, Not a Victim. At first I was taken back, thinking maybe I was crazy for thinking that. But then I remembered Gods words, 

“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:28‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/72/rom.8.28.HCSB

And I read what other encouragers were saying. And I listened to other positive resources in my life.

Yes this life is hard and can be very tough, but, and really only by the Grace of our Heavenly Father, can we make lemonade out of lemons.

Please comment. Ask questions. Give opinions. 

“Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the man who takes refuge in Him!”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:8‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/72/psa.34.8.HCSB

#bitterness #depression #strength #love #refuge #lemonaidefromlemons #egg #carrot #coffeebean