TwentySomething

This is arguably the prettiest cup of coffee I have ever seen. The taste, however, took me by surprise.  My expectations for this chai tea fell desperately short.  I expected, since the coffee looks so delicate and fancy, it would be accompanied by a stellar flavor.  Instead I was engulfed with a bitter aftertaste, leaving me disappointed.

While bitterness is usually associated with flavor, it has developed a place within our mood and sentiment. For example, you could be bitter about a having bad day or leaving somewhere can be “bitter-sweet”.  The weather could be bitter too; the bitter cold.  But what is bitterness really?

Bitterness seems to be a distaste towards something when it does not live up to our expectations.  We are afflicted with bitter attitudes when things don’t go as planned. But if I can remember anything about that beautiful cup of coffee was that it tasted terrible.  No one enjoys bitterness.

If we don’t like the taste of bitterness, then how are people going to view us when we are plagued by bitter sentiments?  It eats you from the inside out, and alters your view and outlook on life as well as those around you.  Bitterness is not a good friend to keep.

Ephesians 4:31-32 states, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”  Bitterness is a the act of unforgiving. God called us to love one another; to love and forgive, in words, thought, and sentiment.  Release the bitter flavors that fill your cup and embrace the sweetness around you.