Tea Bags~repost from Dec. 2006
by adustyframe ~ January 27th, 2009
My sister sent this book to Lee for Christmas. He was telling me about it and I said, “Hey! I found that at the thrift store the other day for .25.”
So we are reading it together. We’ve been talking about things we read or illustrations we like when I visit.
One illustration we both liked was about a tea bag.
He said that if you put a tea bag in the hot water and don’t like the flavor that comes out, it’s not the fault of the hot water. If you want a different flavor to come out in the heat, then you must choose a different tea bag.
A tea bag can only produce what is inside of it.
So often we want to blame our bad attitudes or sin on or circumstances or our trials–the hot water. But according to this illustration, our sin or bad attitude was already inside of us. The hot water didn’t cause that reaction.
What do you think? Is it possible for the hot water in our lives to produce something tasteful and sweet? What is necessary for that to happen?
*This book is by Jim Berg*
January 27th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
this is likely gonna come out ALL WRONG, but anyhow..
-the tea bag is the tea bag, the water brings out its flavor…
-BUT you can alter the flavor….sweeten it, mellow it…add honey , lemon, sugar..cream, milk…..so we can continue the comparison, that yes we are flawed and full of sin..but with God’s love, a loved ones influence, etc…we can have something quite palatable…heck even a really good cup of tea, if if the tea bag was not the premium type….ahahaha
ok, i’m bad at analogies….i hope you get what i’m saying
No it makes sense. I do think he was saying that the flavor of the tea is what’s in the bag. Good attitudes and actions can come out of even flawed sinners, but it has to be in there first. As well as the other point I like is that the hot water isn’t what makes the tea’s flavor. We’re so apt to blame our trials for the way we behave you know?
January 27th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Hi Lizzie!! I came over from your comment at Stephanie’s and boy, here are some coincidences!! My son is James (Jamey), my husband is Leander (nickname Lee) and the biggest and hardest one… my Lee is also in jail. =( I can’t wait till tonight when I have time to read through your archives. I can see already, that you have learned so much through this trial. I hope I’ll come out a better and stronger person at the end of all this, too.
January 28th, 2009 at 9:44 am
Yeah. It’s changing the bad tea leaves to something of good quality that’s the difficult part.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:18 pm
I’ve heard a similar analogy… When you squeeze a ketchup bottle, ketchup comes out. The ketchup doesn’t come out because of the squeezing; it comes out because there was ketchup inside to begin with!
That’s a good one too!