What Can Truth Do For You?

There are moments in life when, if you’re paying attention, you’ll see Biblical truths actively happening right before your eyes. I love taking the opportunity to stop and take notice. The Truth found in the Scriptures is woven into the very fabric of our universe, but, as the saying goes, only he who sees, takes off his shoes.

Yesterday, the Hubs and I decided to do a quick workout and have a special treat afterwards. We popped into a little Italian restaurant near the gym, and it was in my mind that Italian and coffee would probably be a good combination.

We ordered two cappuccinos and a slice of cake to share, and sat in the sort of indoor-outdoor area the restaurant had inside the mall. With cosy little tables, cream-coloured tablecloths, low light and Christmas lights overhead, they’d created a sweet little space, very inviting if you’re a passer-by, perhaps especially a female one.

Our coffees arrived, and the taste was reminiscent of the powder-based coffee drinks you get from those big press-button machines at gas stations, only weaker. I dumped in a few sugar packets and was willing to drink it anyway, but the Hubs just couldn’t, spoke to the waitress about it, and then again in answer to another waiter who stopped by to ask how things were.

{cappuccino not pictured above}

The waiter took HH’s “cappuccino” away and wasn’t planning on making a second attempt. So, we ate our mediocre slice of cake whilst wondering how old it was, and then spent a few minutes trying to make eye contact in order to settle the bill.

You might be catching on to the fact that this special treat was a bit of a disappointment.

We eventually went up to the till to pay, and discovered that we were still supposed to pay for the bad coffee that had been taken away and not replaced. Out of principal we began to discuss the issue, and the waitress explained that in order to remove something from the bill, she needed her boss’s fingerprint on the finger scan thing attached to the cash register’s computer, and he wasn’t there. We also noticed that they’d charged us more for each cappuccino than the price listed on the menu.

The aforementioned waiter came over to discuss the issues regarding the bill, and insisted that we would have to pay the new price, which his boss had just entered into the computer that morning, even though it was not reflected on the menu. The waitress disagreed but sort of seemed disempowered in the situation. As the discussion continued it became apparent that their boss {whom HH is acquainted with from his college days in Bloemfontein} treats his staff so badly that they cannot employ the old adage the customer is always right for fear of losing their jobs.

We were willing to pay the new price for the cappuccino I drank, and willing to pay for the lackluster cake, but paying for the second one, which had been taken away and not replaced, seemed to be asking a little much.

Eventually it worked out that we paid for the cake and one coffee, but the manner in which all of the issues were handled left much to be desired.

Any hopes I’d had of returning there for a charming little slice of pizza with the Hubs were completely dashed, and as we hurried back to Mr. Potato Head in order to arrive at home in time for the Tank’s next feed, these words came alive in my mind:

The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself. {Proverbs 11:25}

The owner of this establishment’s unwillingness to be generous (making weak and sorry coffee, hiking prices without notifying customers appropriately, serving old cake and training staff to be penny-pinching — or rand-pinching — instead of generous) will hinder his prosperity and perhaps eventually close his restaurant.

We would’ve been willing to overlook a sorry cup of coffee and return for a meal if the mistake had been rectified, but the situation if you’ll pardon the pun, left such a bad taste in our mouths, that we won’t return to the restaurant again.

Mind you, we’re not going to go on a campaign to speak badly of the establishment (notice I’m being careful not to mention the name!) but the truth is, good news travels fast and bad news travels faster.

In our own lives, desiring to do (and not just hear) this Scripture, we recently made the decision to aim to be generous whenever possible. Within a month of that decision, we’ve seen miraculous provision come our way.

(Can you say RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME tax refund? Thanks Uncle Sam! And, INCREDIBLE AND AMAZING friends and ministry partners? WE LOVE YOU!)

Every day we have the opportunity to look at what the Bible says and choose whether or not to apply it to our lives. And as I continue be an observer of the life happening all around me, I understand more and more truth from these words:

My son, do not forget my law,
But let your heart keep my commands;
For length of days and long life
And peace they will add to you.

Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart,
And so find favor and high esteem
In the sight of God and man. {Prov. 3:1-4}

Have you seen the fruit of doing the word in your life?

xCC