Lemonade Anyone?
It hasn’t been so long that we could forget the Covid pandemic. It was all we could think about during those times. But during that season, even though there were challenges, there were many who thrived – who invented services and created ideas that made them millionaires. They took the “lemons” and made lemonade with them!
But many didn’t want lemonade. They didn’t even like lemonade. It gave them a tummy ache. But many of us learned that when life begins to catapult lemons our way, we can find the answers in God’s Word.
For example, James 1:19 says: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this. Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” Aw! There’s our lemonade!
If you are like me, you struggle to just get through the first part of this verse – “QUICK to LISTEN!” We all operate with a “right now” mindset. We want answers now, results immediately, relief right away. We are quick to demand explanations but lack listening skills when it comes to discerning why God allows us to experience life’s curve balls.
“SLOW to SPEAK” — Some of us might pray about each of our situations. We tell God why life is hard right now, we ask (sometimes beg) for Him to fix everything immediately. We think that the more we tell God about what is going on in our lives, the quicker He will respond. But if we are honest, how often do we allow ourselves to be still (and quiet) in the presence of God and allow Him to speak?
What I am learning, slowly I might add, is that there is no shame in asking God why He is allowing it to rain lemons. There is nothing wrong with consistently asking Him to take away the lemonade.
In my relationship with God, I’ve come to know that while I may be quick to resist what is going on around me, I need to train my heart to wait patiently for Him to speak. I may not like His answer, but if I say that I want what He wants, then I must trust, listen, and follow where He is leading me…even if it’s to a lemonade stand.
God often chooses to speak to us in the most bizarre ways. Really! Sipping on lemonade might just be one of those ways. If we will just slow down and even sit a spell, the very thing that we had resisted from the beginning starts making sense. What once was bitter and sour tasting, becomes sweet and refreshing. Before we know it, the lemonade is gone, and we begin looking for a refill.
“SLOW to GET ANGRY” — For many of us, we read James 19 in reverse. We are quick to get angry and slow to listen. When life gives us lemons, we throw them back and ask for something better, something more satisfying. The reality of this verse, however, is that it contains the directions to making a better lemonade than we could have imagined.
A familiar, old hymn goes like this: “Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus”. I can almost guarantee the writer was not referring to lemonade. I am confident the truth in that hymn is that when we place our trust in Jesus’ plan for our lives, the outcome is pretty sweet.
So, the choice is ours. When God gives us lemons, can we at least TRY the lemonade?