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An Empty Urn or Fresh Cream?

by Shannon Heiden  
7/03/2010 / Devotionals

As a man thinks, so is he. (Proverbs 23:7 NIV)

Beautiful One, have you ever heard the saying; "perception is everything?" Many of us have said it ourselves. But how often do we say things, and don't take the time to really listen to what we're saying? When was the last time you actually saw how you perceived things?

How we see ourselves, God and others, will determine the level of victory we will attain in our daily lives. If we think of ourselves as less than, we will attract others who treat us that way. If we don't think we deserve the best in life, for sure we wont get it, and if we do, we will somehow push and pull it away from us, because we don't see that we are worthy to behold it.

Recently the Lord used a very simple habit that I have to teach me about my perception. I am an avid Star Bucks iced coffee drinker. I confess that I make daily stops at a minimum of three times a day. I love it, I love the whole experience of going into my neighborhood coffee shop, talking with all the barista's and getting my iced cup of Joe.

As surely as I am telling you this, it never fails, that when they hand me my iced coffee, and I go over to the little sugar and cream counter, the half and half urn is always empty. I kid you not, without fail, it has become a long standing joke that when they see me, they have to run to replenish the empty urn.

One day as I was waiting to hand them the empty urn, I was a bit agitated. I got off of work late, I was tired, and I just wanted to get off my feet, drink my coffee and rest. But because the urn was empty, and there were people ahead of me in line, I had to wait a little longer to get my cream. I was growing more discontent with every minute, thinking to myself; "why is it that everyday I have to go through this?"

The Lord then spoke up, and told me that it was his gift to me to give me fresh cream everyday. This may sound a bit trivial, but it actually is a very profound, and sweet thing the Lord was showing me.

Beings that I am in the food and beverage industry, I personally would prefer the "fresh cream urn" over the one that has been sitting out, half empty. He made a point to remind me that when I am at work in the morning, I am very careful to make sure all of my guests at my tables have fresh cream. It's a pet peeve of mine, I just think warm creamer is tacky.

Let's be honest, who wants old creamer thats been used previously by someone else, and sitting out? Not me, and God knew that it makes my iced coffee, something I thoroughly enjoy, even better. So what if I have to hand the empty urn over every single day, and maybe wait a few minutes longer, it's totally worth it.

The other side of the coin He was showing me is that, I can see the empty urn and be annoyed that there's no cream, and feel sorry that I'm always the one that gets the ball dropped on. Or, I can see that it benefits me to have it empty, so I can get a new one.

Perception changes everything. The way we see ourselves in any situation will change how we feel about it, and how we react to it. Whether it be a small matter of an empty urn, to dealing with the hard issues of life. The way we think, will determine how well we venture through it. May I even go as far as to say, the way we think will either propel us, or repel us in our situations.

The next time you are faced with a little annoyance, I challenge you to ask yourself; "how am I perceiving this?" If we can really examine how we view and approach the mundane tasks and habits we have, it will surely help us to be more aware of how we face the challenges of life...

Will we see the empty urn and complain; why me? Or, will we really have sight and say thank you, I get to have the fresh cream?

Beautiful One, just believe. If you can change your thinking, you can change your life!

Shannon Heiden
[email protected]
changingonelifereachingmany.typepad.com

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