A Bottle of Cold Water
It had been a busy weekend of unpacking, washing, sorting, baseball, packing and loading in preparation to relocate for a few months.And now it was Monday morning and the day promised to be full of unloading, unpacking, cleaning and organizing.
So of course the coffee pot was the first appliance on this morning! I brewed some Cherries Jubilee coffee I found in the pantry. With eyes still filled with sleep I poured that first cup... yuck!
Those contents went down the drain.
Now boxes of groceries have been brought in – ah, some Carmel Vanilla Crème…
Fresh coffee, same result.
Another pot down the drain.
It’s the water.
Although it’s been through the purifying pitcher with the fancy filter it still has a taste and water should not taste.
I run it through the filter a second time, but it still has a taste.
It’s now 10 am and I have a headache.
This body is accustomed to its morning coffee, at 8 am by the latest …I’m not proud of the fact, it’s just what it is.
I put a gallon of distilled water on my shopping list for tonight and plan to get some aspirin after I finish cleaning the refrigerator.
It’s going to be a long slow day…
Cleaning supplies in hand I open the fridge and start pulling shelves out and there it is - a bottle of water.
I crack the seal, screw off the cap and find it is water without taste.
I’m drinking my coffee now as I type!
And I have a better understanding of the scriptural idea of the importance of giving someone “a cup of cold water”.
I’ve always thought it meant that it’s good to help if we know someone is in desperate need.
But maybe it doesn’t. We can’t always tell if someone is in desperate need or sometimes if they are in need at all.
I could have made it through the day without my morning coffee; this wasn’t really a desperate situation…
But God provided 16 oz of purified water and now I’ve had my coffee and it’s affected my attitude (and headache) which will effect how the whole day will go.
For a while there has been a campaign to perform “Random Acts of Kindness”: in this stressed out world it’s a great idea, it's impossible to say how a small kindness can effect someone's entire day.
But as we offer “a cup of cold water” to those we come into contact with, be it by a smile, or by listening, or helping, we do much more than a random act of kindness for we have a promise that “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25: 34-40). To think that I can give to the Lord after all He has given to me…
This has now become a day of amazing opportunities.
Fresh coffee, same result.
Another pot down the drain.
It’s the water.
Although it’s been through the purifying pitcher with the fancy filter it still has a taste and water should not taste.
I run it through the filter a second time, but it still has a taste.
It’s now 10 am and I have a headache.
This body is accustomed to its morning coffee, at 8 am by the latest …I’m not proud of the fact, it’s just what it is.
I put a gallon of distilled water on my shopping list for tonight and plan to get some aspirin after I finish cleaning the refrigerator.
It’s going to be a long slow day…
Cleaning supplies in hand I open the fridge and start pulling shelves out and there it is - a bottle of water.
I crack the seal, screw off the cap and find it is water without taste.
I’m drinking my coffee now as I type!
And I have a better understanding of the scriptural idea of the importance of giving someone “a cup of cold water”.
I’ve always thought it meant that it’s good to help if we know someone is in desperate need.
But maybe it doesn’t. We can’t always tell if someone is in desperate need or sometimes if they are in need at all.
I could have made it through the day without my morning coffee; this wasn’t really a desperate situation…
But God provided 16 oz of purified water and now I’ve had my coffee and it’s affected my attitude (and headache) which will effect how the whole day will go.
For a while there has been a campaign to perform “Random Acts of Kindness”: in this stressed out world it’s a great idea, it's impossible to say how a small kindness can effect someone's entire day.
But as we offer “a cup of cold water” to those we come into contact with, be it by a smile, or by listening, or helping, we do much more than a random act of kindness for we have a promise that “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25: 34-40). To think that I can give to the Lord after all He has given to me…
This has now become a day of amazing opportunities.
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