Barista Diaries - Ice Scrapers

After a day like today, I knew there were many things I wanted to post about, but now that I'm getting around to it I can't remember all of them.

Have you ever noticed that people literally misuse the word "literally" far too often? "That guy just literally pulled out a million dollars to pay." (Really?) "That lady just literally chewed my butt off!" (Your butt must have been massive before that incident.)

Allow me to define the word "literally" to avoid any further confusion:

Literally

–adverb

1. in the literal or strict sense: What does the word mean literally?

2. in a literal manner; word for word: to translate literally.

3. actually; without exaggeration or inaccuracy: The city was literally destroyed.

4. in effect; in substance; very nearly; virtually.

I would like to introduce people to a new word. Figuratively.

Figuratively

–adjective

1. of the nature of or involving a figure of speech, especially a metaphor; metaphorical; not literal: a figurative expression.

2. metaphorically so called: His remark was a figurative boomerang.

3. abounding in or fond of figures of speech: Elizabethan poetry is highly figurative.

4. representing by means of a figure or likeness, as in drawing or sculpture.

5. representing by a figure or emblem; emblematic.

Allow us to review. Literally would refer in accuracy to something that actually happened. While figuratively gives a person the room to make their exaggerations through a figure of speech. Please note the difference & embrace your new-found knowledge.

Now that I've made the distinction, a man literally pulled out his ice scraper & began banging on the drive-through window because my speed wasn't urgent enough for him (I should note that I wasn't moving slowly). That was a first for me. He certainly did not win any cool points today, in fact I'm pretty sure cool points were deducted on account of him being such a butthole to a complete stranger. 

"Faithful God"

If I call will You come?
When I cry do You hear?
I believe every tear is caught up by a faithful God.
So I will cry until You come,
Cast my cares into Your arms.
I can't see past this storm, but I'm counting on a faithful God.

Faithful God,
You hold my life secure,
All my days are Yours.
I believe
My God is like a fire defending me
Faithfully.

I believe You still heal,
& demons still bow
I'm convinced there is power in trusting in a faithful God.
So I will praise 'til You appear,
& set Your foot upon this shore
I declare that every foe is subject to my faithful God

I know that You are mine
& I am Yours, I am Yours.
& I know Your faithfulness,
It will endure, it will endure.

- Zach Neese "Faithful God"
Gateway Worship

Embracing Need.

Pastor Brian Houston of Hillsong church in Sydney, Australia brought an empowering word this morning at the conference. He opened with Philippians 4:19, which says "And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Taking that into consideration, I should inform you (if you haven't already learned this about me) that I am an extremely independent person. I love having quality time with people, but too often I appreciate quality time with myself much more. I prefer not to be in need of anything...& if I have a need I generally take care of it myself. I'm the worst person to buy a present for because if I want or need something I will just go out & get it for myself.

Pastor Brian spoke a word that was true revelation for me, he said that "at the core of sin is a commitment to independence." He's right on. At the core of sin is an attitude that says "I don't need other people" or one that causes us to rely upon ourselves. Needlessness devalues.

Look at the stories where Jesus feeds the multitudes, there was a need & GREAT things came out of that need. He supplied in excess. Need represents the blessing & supply of God in our life.

In our society we're conditioned to believe that need is a bad thing- it's a sign of weakness...& you know what, in our weakness HE is strong & HIS power & glory are made manifest. We need MORE need in our lives. We should embrace our need for God, our need for His divine provision His divine supplication, & our need for community.

My Pastor is continually stating that God is our source. It's our reliance on Him that enables us to receive His blessings. If God is my source then I have no reason to worry & be anxious about what the future (the unknown) will hold.

So let's become people who embrace need & let's believe God that He's going to supply us with overflowing blessings that continually shine His glory & His power. And let's shake this generation by His divine supplication.

DNA

I had another blog prepared entirely, but as the day went on I began to feel led to share something different. First let me state that I'm fairly certain Texas discriminates against people walking down the street because the sidewalks don't exist, plus the funny looks are priceless. I also think they measure distances much differently than we do because Starbucks did not look this far away on the map.

I've heard a lot of good word today & some incredible insights into leadership & worship in general, but the part I would like to focus on came during the final general session today. Pastor Sion Alford talked about the DNA of the church- the concepts that should be at work in every healthy, successful ministry. In Numbers 3 it lists the names of the sons of Levi & their responsibilities in the nation of Israel. Levi had three sons: Gershon, Kohath, & Merari. The passage goes on the explain that the Merarites were called to strengthen & bless- they brought structure. The Gershonites were in charge of the coverings & systems that were put in place. Last, but not least the Kohathites were to oversee the articles & the sanctuary. In order to have a healthy, successful ministry you need all three foundations working in harmony- structure, systems, & sanctuary.

The structures that we put in place are determined by a clear vision (simple & constantly communicated), clear values, & a clear mission (how you get to where your vision directs). The systems are the processes set in place that run the ministry. Systems, when they're simple & reproducible, will run on their own. The third foundation is sanctuary, which is the time we spend in the presence of the Lord- making TIME to get alone with God. In Numbers 7:1-9 Moses is determining how many oxen & wagons each area is allotted. The thing to note is that he didn't give the Kohathites (sanctuary overseers) any wagons or oxen because Sanctuary is daily, it's something we can never put on a cart because it can't run itself.

The priorities of a worship leader are to first minister to the Lord & second help others minister to the Lord. Too often we become "I-focused" & we forget that worship is our ministry to the Most High God- it's not for us to receive, but to give all of us for all of Him.

insecurities.

Lately I've been considering how often we (human beings) are prone to react based on our insecurities. It's a natural occurrence. No one likes to feel vulnerable, & trusting that other people will be sincere feels like a game of Russian Roulette. I have gotten so bad at not opening up to people that a barricade of "introversion" (which is apparent considering the manner of this blog) has established itself around me. I try to let my strengths outshine my uncertainty, which generally causes me to become apprehensive knowing that it will only be a matter of time before a person hits that vulnerable point in me. I am always in my head, in fact a close friend of mine is continually telling me to "relax". He's right. All good things that come in life are a result of some level of risk. We have to put ourselves out there to experience what it really is to be alive. The greatest reminder is that God chose me. Catherine Kulhman stated that "God isn't looking for perfect vessels, He's looking for yielded vessels." So for those times when I don't feel like I'm good enough or when I focus heavily on my shortcomings or when I analyze situations to death & fear that somewhere along the road I could have done something differently to achieve another outcome I just need to take a deep breath, relax, & remember that He chose me...& to Him I am perfect.

One of my favorites...

Barista Diaries - Addicts

Because of my availability, I work in the mornings. Generally I'm awake around three o'clock to be at work by four A.M. Working a similar schedule from day to day allows me the opportunity to greet the same faces every morning. I've found that the best way to get to know my customers (as with all relationships) is to find & focus on our common interests...or just talk about them (because everyone likes to talk about him or herself). I have customers who give me book recommendations. I have customers who tell me about their love life. I have genuine customers who seem to really be interested in what I do when I leave the four walls of the store. There are certain customers who have a generally pleasant demeanor & are easy to talk to & there are others (who I pride myself on having developed comradery with) who take a while to break down. Even though I wake up at an ungodly hour it's reassuring to know that I'll be greeted all day long with so many familiar faces. It's as if I live in an episode of "Cheers"...where everybody knows my name.

Gotta Get Down To It

"You say you got a real solution

Well, you know we'd all love to see the plan.

Don't you know it's going to be alright?"

- The Beatles

From a young age, the value of education is established into the minds of United State-ians. We are told that in order to obtain a decent living we must acquire a reasonable career, which can only be landed with a college degree, & the only way to be accepted into a respectable college is by securing high marks throughout high school & earlier. Please don't misunderstand me- I firmly agree that education is a necessary part of what makes a well-rounded individual. As a (somewhat) recent college graduate I've discovered- along with thousands of other recent college graduates- that a Bachelor's degree will not really get you anywhere these days. Most recent college graduates are living on wages that are considered around or below the poverty line, add to that the fact that we're paying off tens of thousands of dollars in student loans & our finances become a source of nausea, anxiety, & denial. When we graduate, a small percentage of us know exactly what we want to do with our lives & the rest of us find some type of safety job to spend years discovering what we actually want in a career. It's an unsettling place to be.

Egypt has been the hot topic throughout the past two weeks. As I dug into the demands & causes behind the protests I started to discover that the majority of protesters are under thirty & unsatisfied with the state of their lives. Their wages force them to live in poverty, & the government, being aware of their circumstance, has not done anything to better their condition. The difference between them & us is that their level of poverty is significantly lower. Having an unstable governmental situation in Egypt is no doubt alarming, but I cannot disagree with the protesters attempting to peacefully disapprove of their circumstance. Their demonstrations have brought against them brutalities that seem in many ways a parallel of a certain Ohio tragedy back in May of 1970.

We have been promised change, but no change comes. I'm not calling for large demonstrations or civil unrest, but I'm unsatisfied with the false hope that seems to be only smoke & mirrors. I no longer want to live in a state of discontent, I think it's time to start being the change & creating it for ourselves.

Barista Diaries - Etiquette

I am employed by a well known establishment that supplies consumers with their daily dose (or overdose) of legal addictive stimulants. Those of you with food industry experience are well aware of the fact that being on our side of the counter comes with it's fair share of entertaining situations & fascinating people. Eventually I'd like to share a few stories of my time here, but first I think it's necessary that I share a few tips on etiquette for absent-minded patrons.

1. It is not in your best interest to start your order with "Give me a...", not that we'll go in the back & spit in your food (I've never heard of it at my store), but we'll continue to keep you in our good graces if you are polite.

2. I do not recommend coming to the drive-thru & placing an order of fifteen drinks with thirty assorted pastries (with no preference on type) during a rush...or at any other time for that matter. Park your car & come inside.

3. Note that if we do not know your name & you come in regularly enough we will make one up for you (& you will most likely never know). Like "Boo" (who's real name was recently discovered), "Fabio", "Americano Guy", "Girl Who Cheats The System", or the unfortunate "Porn Guy" (who abuses our free wireless internet).

4. Pick-up lines are not encouraged & will most certainly earn you a place on our "creepy customer" list.

5. Rearranging the furniture is okay, just don't block the front door & then look at us as if we're the stupid ones when we ask you to move because it's a fire hazard.

Take note & enjoy your beverage.