Archives: June 2009

Editorial...

Put the kettle on!

I just can’t understand people who put milk in with a tea bag BEFORE adding the boiling water. My bro uses this technique, and many others too. They say it’s traditional. I say it’s lazy. I’m convinced you just end up with a weaker cup of tea - and no-one enjoys a weak cup of tea.

Me, I make tea the right way. Tea bag, boiling water and then a little wait. After a moment or two, add a splash of milk, another little wait and then you take out the tea bag with your fingers in order to get all the goodness from the leaves without having to squeeze the bag (squeezing the bag is never a good thing). That’s it, a simple, strong and perfect cuppa suitable every hour on the hour throughout the whole morning.

You’d think that would be it. No-one could argue with the clarity, simplicity and beauty of my tea making style - or could they? Over the years I have endured many tea making schemes. Suffice to say, all the tea makers I have met insist on the superiority of their tea making techniques. Try as I might, they just won’t be swung to my perspective. Some have tried my ways, but after a while they have resorted to their previous methods. I let it slide, but deep down, I know they are wrong. The way I make tea is the right way.

What’s the point of all this very English talk about tea? Well, Jesus didn’t make tea. He probably didn’t even drunk a cup of chow during his time on Earth, so luckily my point isn’t so much about Jesus, but about how we look at others, and especially the way we view other people’s relationship with God.

I can get so used to doing stuff ‘my way’ that I don’t give time to see the benefits of how others live, act and get on with their relationship with God. I can be guilty of thinking that the way I walk out my relationship with God is the ‘right way’, when in fact, God is challenging me to learn from the experiences of other people. I guess if I’m keen to know Jesus more then I have to let him continually challenge my ‘me centered’ view of the world and not get stuck in a ‘I do it my way’ rut. If the Bible talks about the church as a body, with different roles and different parts there must be something in recognizing that on my own I’m not the answer and I’m not always going to be right. It doesn’t mean I always have to change and become like other people, but it does mean I need to learn to value and learn from how others relate to God (and maybe make tea). You never know, I might be missing something pretty special! 

Moving on beyond the tea, this month we have a bunch of new articles, including some stuff from Mike on grace, our South African mate Matt writes on image, Craig looks into limiting your water supply and we have an mp3 to listen to by Todd Atkinson on desert experiences (it’s very good).

Have fun, and do email in suggestions, comments, thoughts and any good jokes (we love a good laugh).

Enjoy the sunshine.

Dan
editor@soulsurvivor.com