royalTEA

5/12/11

I thought I would blog about "tea for 2" because I have some really good tea on my tea tray these days. But......I decided that more important than my quiet time tea was the relationship pursuant between the king and the "sipper." royalTEA!

These days so many of us feel beset by catastrophes. Overwhelming disasters. Droughts. Tornados. Floods. Memphis has made national news every night this week with the flooding and cresting of the mighty and very wide & muddy Mississippi. In my own life, I have added a certain amount of physical misery, a lot of uncertainty and the imminent loss of a loved one to those events. All of this made my morning "cuppa" a little bitter. But God...reminded me that I am His child. The King of Kings has called me His own. That makes me royalty of the highest sense. More than that, this kinship/relationship offers me hope. Hope is crucial.

But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. (Isaiah 43:1)

Even if the memories of these last few weeks continue to "haunt" me for years to come, I know that these life lessons have been filtered through His loving hand. Therefore I have hope. And hope is what we all need. That and a good cup of hot tea--- a cuppa of Fortnum and Mason's Royal Blend, don't you think!

Royal--TEA

10/25/10 Fortnum & Mason’s Royal Blend is an appropriate “cuppa” choice for a child of the king. It’s also one of my favorites. However, according to my somewhat faded notes of July 2, 2003, my “cuppa” was somewhat weak---1 tea bag with 8 oz. water and 1 ½ t. sugar (nowadays I use more sugar & less milk) and 2 T of milk didn’t cut it. (I don’t use cream or half-and-half because it tends to mask the tea flavor.) Needed more umph. At 7:15, following my quiet time, I took a second cup brewed w/ F & M loose tea to the patio along with the food section of the Wednesday Commercial Appeal and found the stronger taste more to my liking, even though it was already 73° outside. Plus, I carried with me the teaching of scripture for the rest of the day.

I did feel like royalty that morning. Summer schedules have a way of doing that for teachers. I had time for a “cuppa” with my Father, the King of Kings---that’s really royal—TEA.

I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. (2 Corinthians 6:18)

Live like royalty today. Take this scripture or the scripture of your choice with you throughout the day.