Cold brew season

"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….”  - Hebrews 12:1

I just made my first batch of cold brew coffee to anticipate the warmer season that is coming. Cold brew is made differently than typical hot or iced coffee. Rather than pouring hot water over coffee grounds and getting a cup after a minute or two (or pouring it over ice), cold brew requires the coffee grounds to steep in cool water for 12-14 hours. The process is not nearly as efficient, but the end result is remarkable. After you finish filtering the coffee, you are left with a strong, smooth cup of iced coffee. The most noticeable difference is that because of the slow process, the coffee no longer has any bitterness. 

Our world is full of instant gratification and quick, efficient solutions to problems. If we’re honest, we long for the way of Jesus to be formed in us with the same sort of efficiency. 

What do we want? 
THE GOOD LIFE!!! 

When do we want it?? 
NOW! 

Are we willing to walk patiently-for-months-and-months-while-allowing-God-to-chip-away-at-hard-edges-bitterness-and-self-focus? 
Uhhhhhh….

Unfortunately, transformation takes time. Patience and perseverance is hard. Choosing to keep walking when you thought you would have reached the destination by now can be disheartening. But do not give up today. Many have gone before us, and many will continue after us. Jesus invites us to follow him. The journey itself is integral to the destination. We need the hours, the days, the months, and the years of shuffling and sprinting with Jesus to experience the remarkable. As the time goes by, we begin to see our bitterness fade. We respond to situations not in anger, but in understanding. We speak words of grace over judgment, and we hear the whispers of God that we were too noisy to notice at the beginning. 

Perhaps this week you need to cook something, make something, write something, or build something…. that takes just a little more time than usual. Make popcorn on the stove rather than the microwave. And remember that as we hang in there day by day, Jesus will form something beautiful in us.  

A quote for further reflection:
“And yet I decide, every day, to set aside what I can do best and attempt what I do very clumsily--open myself to the frustrations and failures of loving, daring to believe that failing in love is better than succeeding in pride.” 
-Eugene Peterson

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