A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor. The conversationsoon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work and life in general.Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive, some quiteexquisite. Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee.When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address thesmall gathering. ''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems."He continued. "Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup, but you instinctively went for the best cups. Then you began eyeing each other's cups.''''Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the Life we live. Often, by concentrating only on the cup,we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us. God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!''The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything. So please remember: Live simply. Love generously. Care Deeply. Speak Kindly. Leave the Rest to God. And remember - the richest person is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least.
Many times, we don't take the opportunity in life to think about connections. Much like the way legos connect to erect the building or vehicle you are trying to create, without connecting pieces, our lives would fall apart. It's not often that we take time to reflect on those connections in meaningful ways. If I am honest, when we moved from Indiana back to Florida, we didn't appreciate the connections we had and so as I look back I wonder what life would have been like if we'd not only appreciated those connections, but supported them in meaningful ways. Since moving to Greenville, not only have we made connections, but we've made it a part of life to connect with those people we've met that have become more like family than friends. We took the time to find a church that really believes in connecting with their people and not in a way that makes the patrons of the church feel like they are just a player in the game of chess and that player's job is to be
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