Reading the Divine Conspiracy has brought back many thoughts of posts I have written in the past. The Kingdom life Willard is describing is one that is permeated by the Love of Christ so much that we instinctively live out that same love. That love then affects those whom we interact with everyday. With that in mind I want to share with you one of my favorite posts….
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When you walk into the local coffee shop what is the first thing you notice? If you are like me it is the aroma of the fresh brewed coffee. For me (and I would say for most coffee drinkers) the aroma of coffee is just as important as the taste. There is something about getting a good smell of the coffee that just wakes up the taste buds so they are more receptive to the flavor of the coffee. When not on the move or in the car the first thing I do is take the lid off my coffee cup, I want the full experience.
However what we tend to do is be on the move so much that we put a lid on the coffee cup, and drinking coffee becomes more gulping down as fast as we can while move from here to there. The aroma gets lost behind the barrier of the cup’s lid. The liquid in the cup is the same, but the full experience of aroma and flavor is gone. It is not until we slow down and take the lid off that the full experience can be had.
Often we treat our faith like coffee. We get busy with the world, and get distracted so we quickly slap on a lid on our faith. We don’t allow it to grow and we don’t allow it to be lived in action. We tend to think it is for ourselves and we allow it to in many ways to become flavorless. Our faith is really meant to be lived with no barriers to hold it back and its aroma is to be experienced by everyone that surrounds us.
Hebrews (Great name for a coffee shop…HMMMM) 11:1 Starts a chapter that tells us about faith, and how it
is to be lived. The saints talked about in Hebrews 11 don’t just sit around and talk about their faith. They don’t package up their faith in in flavorless bible studies and worship.
By faith Abel, By Faith Enoch, By Faith Noah, By Faith Abraham, By Faith .. Issaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses… By Faith in action they followed the One true God to fulfill his plan. By their own faith in action they affected the lives and faith of many. Their faith doesn’t become covered by a lid of the world, and entangled in all the stuff that distracts us from our faith. No, They lived there faith for others.
Hebrews 12: 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Emphasis Mine on the action)
By the faith, and using the saints as examples, the Church is to be in action. Are we apprehensive and unsure sometimes? Sure, but if we trust in God and we take the lid off our faith, our actions in faith should be the aroma that attracts those around us to want to experience what we have.
1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (Emphasis on the action)
How about “Hebrews Joppa Java” for the name of a coffee shop?
