Communication and Coffee

The book of Proverbs offers us sound principles for personal conduct, and we can be confident that the Lord will express Himself through those who are dedicated to doing His work. Consider this passage from Proverbs 13:
3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.
4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
5 A righteous man hates lying, But a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
6 Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless, But wickedness overthrows the sinner.
7 There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.

So, there you have it - we are called to pursue the riches of the Kingdom of God.  In our pursuit of God's ways, in doing our work as unto Him, we will experience His provision, but we should always be dedicated to honoring God in the work we do.  We are called to diligence, not laziness; we should speak the truth and not lies - we are called and empowered to reflect the presence of Christ in us.  And, the decisions we make each day should be made according to His direction.

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Spiritually speaking, what's on the inside will flow from our hearts into our outward actions. The apostle Paul was emphatic about making sure we are glorifying the Lord through our lives, including our work. He states this in Colossians 3:
17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
Later in the chapter, he writes:
23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

When an unborn baby is seven weeks old, he or she is the size of a coffee bean. So says Anton Krecic, the founder and CEO of Seven Weeks Coffee. He is quoted in a CBN.com article: "At seven weeks, a baby is the size of a coffee bean and it's the same time a mother has their first ultrasound. This is why we donate 10% of every sale to pregnancy care centers to support their ultrasound services!"

The article notes that the relatively new company "has donated over $100,000 to pro-life pregnancy care centers since Roe v. Wade's reversal, and over $125,000 since the company's establishment in late 2021." Krecic who has volunteered a pregnancy resource centers, relates: "Pregnancy care centers are the hands and feet of the pro-life movement. They are at the frontlines – helping women in need and defending life. It takes practical resources to meet families at their point of need, and we are privileged to help in a tangible way..."

Seven Weeks Coffee has had over 25,000 customers and has over 13,000 followers at its Instagram page.

Meanwhile, a new coffee shop in Denver has received some unwanted publicity around the time of its opening. According to the television station, Denver 7's website:

Jamie Sanchez, owner of The Drip Café, said he opened the coffee shop in the Santa Fe Arts District for a purpose.

"Our parent company, Recycled God's Love, has been helping the homeless since 2012," said Sanchez, who formed the company with his late wife and his sister. "[The café] is part of our project to provide jobs and funding for the homeless community coming out of homelessness."

The article says that:

Inside the cafe, Ephesians 4:32 is painted on the wall. "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."

"Our whole point is to love everybody," said Sanchez.

Unfortunately, there were those in the LGBTQ community who protested the coffee shop's opening, saying that shop actually hated those in that community. Sanchez adjusted the company's website to make sure that it was communicated well that the ministry did not approve of homosexuality, but that gay people were welcomed at the shop. Sanchez noted, "In all reality, we do just want to stand firmly on the scriptures of the Bible," adding, "We do disagree with the lifestyle, but we don't hate you."

Meanwhile, a well-known coffee chain has faced some tension over how it embraces the LGBTQ agenda.  The Hill reported last week that "Starbucks is planning to roll out 'clearer' guidelines for stores on its decoration policies amid a clash with the company’s union over Pride-themed displays this month."

The article, published on Tuesday, June 27, says that:

Sara Trilling, the executive vice president and president of Starbucks North America, emphasized in a memo to all U.S. partners on Monday that it has not made any changes to its policies on “our inclusive store environments, our company culture, and the benefits we offer our partners.”

Some 3,500 employees of 150 stores had planned to go on strike in late June to protest how the company treats gay pride and other issues.

While the coffee a person drinks may not necessarily illustrate his or her ideology, the products that we certainly can reflect our deeply-held values.  Ideally, all the decisions we make should reflect our faith in and dependence on Christ.  And, yes, the ideology of companies has become a rather big deal these days.

I submit that Christian businesses, or other entities, for that matter, should reflect a sense of Christian values. That is expressed through the atmosphere of the company and the way it treats its customers. There may not be a Scripture verse on the wall, but if the Word of God is written on the hearts of those in charge, that can certainly be seen.  The way products are marketed and companies are promoted all go into a package that glorifies Christ.  And, I think that we should reward companies that are run according to those principles.  If we are doing our work according to the Lord, there will be a tangible effect.