By the Way: Be coffee

By Scott Raible on August 16, 2025.

Life is filled with challenges. No one escapes adversity – be it illness, betrayal, financial trouble, or personal loss. But the question is not whether trials will come. The real question is: How will you respond? I want to share a metaphor that illustrates this truth – a simple story involving a potato, an egg, and coffee beans.

A young woman, overwhelmed by her problems, went to her father. He was a chef. Without saying a word, he placed three pots of water on the stove and brought them to a boil. In one pot, he placed potatoes. In the second, eggs. In the third, ground coffee beans. After twenty minutes, he turned off the heat.

He asked her, “What do you see?” She replied, “Potatoes, eggs, and coffee.” He then invited her to touch each. The potato, once hard, had become soft. The egg, once fragile, had become hard inside. But the coffee? It had transformed the water itself – releasing a beautiful aroma and flavor.

Then he said, “Each of these faced the same adversity – boiling water – but each responded differently. Which one are you?”

The Bible says in James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” Like the potato, egg, or coffee, we all face the boiling waters of life. But the testing of our faith is meant to shape us.

Are you like the potato? Strong at first, but weakened by stress and hardship?

Or like the egg? Soft and tender inside, but when hurt, you become hardened and bitter?

Or are you like the coffee? Instead of being changed by your environment, you change the environment through your faith in Christ?

Romans 5:3-5 reminds us that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And this hope does not disappoint.

So I ask you today: When adversity comes, will it break you, harden you, or transform you? With Christ, you have the power to be like the coffee-bringing peace, strength, and the sweet aroma of grace into the trials of life.

May we choose to let God use our hardships not to destroy us, but to refine us for His glory.

Scott Raible has served as an ordained minister in Medicine Hat for the past 20 years, and started Christian radio in Medicine Hat with Alive 99.5 and was an announcer and music director with 93.7 Praise FM. Scott can be reached at scottraible@gmail.com

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