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Probably at some point, you have heard of the woman who spill hot coffee in her lap, and sued McDonald’s for millions. What you usually hear, is how this woman drove into the drivethru at McDonald’s and bought hot coffee, that she then stuck between her legs. Because it was a Styrofoam cup with a slip on slid, the coffee spilled in her lap. The you hear that that this lady was awarded nearly 3 million dollars because she burned her lap. Generally, most people tend to feel more sympathy for an individual, than they do for multi-billion dollar corporation. In this case some people side more with McDonald’s, reasoning that this woman doesn’t deserve much, if anything, afterall, McDonald’s did not spill the coffee, she did that herself, it was her poor judgement that led to the accident. They also think that 3 million is a ridiculous amount of money, for a coffee scald.

Perhaps, you are one of those people. We are always hearing of frivolous lawsuits and/or excessive judgement is lawsuits. Perhaps this angers you some, because you know that these things, cost us all money. Perhaps you believe that if you were in her shoes, you would not have brought this suit, but just admitted your own fault and move on, after you stopped screaming from the pain.

Those are easy positions to take, aren’t they? You may not have you facts strait however. For example, this woman was not driving, she was a passenger in the car, and the car was not in motion. She was opening the lid to add cream and sugar, yes, the coffee was between her legs as she attempted to remove the lid. The lid was on tight enough (which is good, because you would not want the lid to come off if the cup overturned while driving) that she had to squeeze the cup with her legs to keep the cup from lifting, while she pulled the lid off, but, once the lid was off, the cup lost reinforcement, and the pressure from her legs squeezed cup out of round, and the coffee squirted up and out of the cup. In a moment, the coffee was absorbed into her sweatpants which kept the hot coffee in contact with her skin. The pain made her react instinctively and uncontrollably, spilling the rest of the coffee - you get the picture.

Now, this doesn’t make the spill the responsibility of McDonald’s, but it does transform the incident from one of a really foolish driver with hot coffee in her lap, to a mistake and accident that anyone of us might have made.

Now, what you also might not know, that this was not simply a painful burn. The burns she received were extensive. Six percent of her skin was third degree burns, with additional second and first degree burns. How did it get to such a large about of her body? Well, after the initial burns on her legs an groin, the coffee ran downhill to the car seat, where her buttocks were burned. Without getting too detailed, she was burned everywhere in between. She spent the next eight days in the hospital, having dead tissue removed and receiving skin grafts.

The woman sought $20,000 from McDonald’s, but McDonald’s refused. This is when she sought relief through a lawsuit. During the discover portion of the trial, McDonald’s produced documents which showed that there had been at least 700 claims by people burned by McDonald’s coffee, in the ten years prior to this woman’s case. This shows that McDonald’s knew that it had a problem with the temperature of it’s coffee.

McDonald’s also provided information, to the effect that they keep there coffee on hold, at 185 degrees, plus or minus 5 degrees. This is substantially hotter that other establishments. Coffee at home, is usually served at 135 to 140 degrees. To give a perspective, most adults cannot make them selves, not matter how hard they try, hold there hand in water over 130 degree. Water at 105 degrees, is about the most people can tolerate in a hot tub, 95 to 100 still feeling quite hot. Eighty  degrees above that, is quite hot! Water at 180 degrees, can give you a third degree burn, in as little as two seconds.

There are other facts that you may not have heard, but I will skip most of them. Remember that three million dollars? Well 2.7 million of that was punitive damages. For those of you not familiar with how are civil court system works, punitive damages are not awarded to the plaintiff, because the plaintiff deserves or needs them. The are designed to punish the defendant (McDonald’s), so that they will have an incentive, to change their behavior, and stop serving coffee that unnecessarily burns 70 people every year. This amount, at the time, was the equivalent of two days worth of coffee sales for McDonald’s. Damages, the amount awarded to the plaintiff as compensation, was awarded by the jury in the amount of $200,000, but it was reduced to $160,000, because the jury found that the plaintiff was 20% responsible. The punitive damages, were reduce by a judge, to $480,000, but the judge said that McDonald’s was reckless, callous, and willful. The parties entered into a secret settlement subsequently, so we do not know how much McDonald’s actually payed. I am guessing that it was less, that McDonald’s threatened to appeal the verdict and/or awards, and that the plaintiff might end up with nothing, so, a compromise was stuck. I do not know, this is just a guess.

O.K. What does all of this have to do with a Christian administrator’s blog?

I do not know if know the facts of the case that I presented about, change your opinion about it at all, that is not the point. But you can see, that someone might come to different conclusions, if they have all of the facts, or in some cases just admit that they do not know all of the facts, and suspend judgement until they do have the facts.

We, as Christians, have a lot of insecurity usually on the topic of judgement. Some of us think think that it means that we should not criticise others. It does not mean that. If you want, you can see my thoughts on judgement as a theological topic, you may, but that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about how quick we can be, to leap to false conclusions, when we do not have the facts. Sometimes we think we have the facts, but we do not know how much more to a story there is than is apparent. Sometimes, it is none of our business to know all of the facts, and in such cases, might we want to consider suspending our opinions out of recognizing our own ignorance? We often have too much pride, to consider that we might be wrong, might not have the facts (who wants to be ignorant?).

How do we do this? How does it manifest, where is the harm?

We do this when we become critical of others, when they behave in a way that we do not approve of, but we may not realize, that we might have done the same thing in their position. Friendships can be damaged, congregations torn apart, or, if not torn apart, we separate into factions or cliques, where we justify why we are not like those other guys, as the do the same thing concerning us. This is not pleasing to God, we are one family, we are to love the brethren, bearing one another’s burdens, making peace, forgiving each other, as God also forgave us. Before you are tempted to reply and scold me and tell me that the Bible instructs us to judge those in church, save your breath, I understand that. Again, that is not the subject here. My topic is more about jumping to unfounded conclusions.

Another way that we manifest this faulty type of judgement, is we sometimes blame God, when something in our life is not as we think it should be. We have no idea what is going on behind the scenes. God is the only one who knows all of the details, that lead Him to the actions He performs, or allows things in our lives, that we may not like. We do not know what greater purpose might be serve by our discomfort, or how those things are shaping us into better people, perfecting us in areas that need change inour lives. Perhaps the biggest thing we forget, is that while we may approach His throne and make requests, the decisions are His, and they are always right. We were bought with a price, we belong to Him, and we have no rightful claim on our own lives. To the extent that we maintain our own sense of entitlement, we are outside of His perfect will for us. We are at our best, when we complete surrender ourselves to His will. It is not a natural thing for us to do, it is a supernatural quality. Jesus said it best:

“Never-the-less, thy will, not my will, be done.”

Genesis 2: 8-9 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden. And there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food. The tree of life also was in the middle of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

I noticed today that fall is in the air. My miniature roses are starting to recover from the intense desert heat of the summer and bloom again. They are beautiful and delicate. So many tiny blossoms on each potted plant on my patio. My little rose garden.

I read Genesis 2 recently and noticed something I hadnt seen before. Maybe its because this part of the bible is so familiar to me so I didnt pay careful attention to it. The LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight. He created something pleasant to our eyes. It wasnt enough that it filled our dietary need. He caused it to be pleasant to our senses. Our Lord is so loving to us, that He desired to create plants that would please our eyes. My roses are a gift from Him. Something He created to give me pleasure, to bring a smile to my face. Indeed every good and perfect gift is from Him.

Colossians 4:6 Let your speech be always with grace, having been seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

Nowadays using salt is considered bad for our blood pressure, but in ancient times, salt was valued, traded. A seasoning of worth. Salt is a preservative, something to prevent food from spoiling in a time when refrigeration was not available. In ancient times, salt was a symbol of covenant. Treaties ratified with salt were unable to be broken. In Leviticus, we see that the Levites were to season each sacrifice with salt. Indeed, the term for it was salt of the covenant of God. A covenant not to be broken. Mark 9:49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. Everyone of us believers is in covenant with God through the blood of Christ.

So then what does it mean to have your speech seasoned with salt? We are under a covenant of salt with the Lord. All of our actions and words should reflect Him. He is glorified by what we do. Sometimes we are the only “bible” someone sees. Our words need to be spoken with the love of Christ. Our words should be given to us by the Holy Spirit when we witness. Our words are to be tempered, seasoned if you will, by our Lord. When we answer each one regarding the Blessed Hope we have in Christ, it should be His words we speak, words given to us by the Holy Spirit, spoken gently in love. Seasoned with salt.

Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the seat of the scornful.

With this poetic line, the psalmist shows a progression towards sin. At first, the man might casually walk with the ungodly, then he might willingly stand with the sinners, finally to sit comfortably with those who mock God. Each step becoming more rooted in the ways of sin. Each step identifying more with the sinners than with the Lord.

Think about the image of a boiling frog. If you bring a pot to boil and throw a frog into it, he will jump out fast. But if you put him in mild water and slowly bring it to a boil, he wont notice. The frog is desensitized to the changes in the temperature of the water. It is the same with sin. If you begin to hang around the lost in their sins, accepting their sins, well it doesn’t seem so bad. Progressively the sins you don’t notice become more serious until you are in danger.

How can you resist becoming desensitized to sin? The psalmist supplies the answer. Psalms 1:2 But his delight is only in the Law of Jehovah; and in His Law he meditates day and night. Get grounded in the word. Be strong in your faith and hold fast to the precepts of the Lord. See sin as sin. Then you will be the “tree planted by the rivulets of water that brings forth its fruit in its seasons, and its leaf shall not wither, and all which he does shall be blessed” in verse 3.

(This is an older blog entry I have from another blog site of mine.)

From something I wrote a couple of months ago….

Today is the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. My city took in about 3,000 of the refugees, so the local newspaper did a feature about where they are now. They were poor, taken from their homes having lost everything they had. Placed in the southwest desert and expected to make a new life. Some rose to the occasion and are doing well. Many of them were not doing so well. Suffering from many trauma, health issues, running out of assistance, living on the streets etc.

The website for the newspaper allows people to post comments about the stories. There were about a dozen comments. Most of them were heartless. Comments like “These people are using this tragic event as an excuse to continue doing nothing. I feel no pity.” Another wrote “I feel nothing for these lazy sponges that complain they can’t get their lives in order. They were losers before the storm, they are losers after the storm and unfortunately, in life some people are incapable of being better then losers.” And still another “Is there anyway we can deport these Katrina parasites?”

Perhaps Im not much better. I havent contributed to them. I havent lifted a finger to help them out. I remember seeing them after the storm, at the local sports arena where they were housed for a couple of weeks. The poor we will always have with us He said. We are to help those in need. To love our neighbor as ourselves. In what way have I done that?

Hmm. This blog entry didnt turn out at all like I thought it would. Seems I need to do some careful examination of my heart.

Earlier this month, I read an article about Mother Teresa and the absence of His presence that she felt for years. She expressed in letters things I routinely hear from others. How they dont experience the Lord. How they dont hear Him. How they cant feel Him. They wonder, as she did, is He real?

There is a difference that I see. For too many today, feeling that spiritual drought often causes them to turn away from Him. To claim He isnt real. Or worse, to claim He doesnt deserve their adoration because they dont hear from Him.

Mother Teresa clung to Him even in her emptiness. She said “I want to love Jesus as he has never been loved before.” She also said “I accept not in my feelings - but with my will, the Will of God - I accept His will.” Even in her darkness when He seemed so far away, she placed Him first in her life. His wants, His will, before her own. That is a lesson we could all benefit from.

Poverty in America

I realize that many reading this are not in America, nor are they perhaps very familiar with United States society. For those of you that are in this non - U.S. perspective, you may have to adjust the details of this blog, to make it relevant to your local economy, or, just take it in and use it as an insight to the way things are in the United States. However, the target audience of this blog, is those who do live in the U.S., and even there, you may need to adjust for local economies. There will be some facts and figures here, as well as some anecdotal stories, hopefully through this all, you may find a point of two, that will make you think.

Now, since this is featured on a Christian chat site, it would not be appropriate for me to exclude the spiritual perspectives of the topic, I will probably save much of that for nearer the end. For now, I want us to understand the nature of poverty in the U.S., so I will begin with the stories and statistics.

In the 2005 U.S. Census, it was discovered that there are 37 million poor people in the U.S. That works out to about to about one in eight of us. Politicians sometimes use that statistic to make apeals on why there needs to be change (usually a vote for them is supposed to be the solution). It does seem incredible, that in a country of of abundance, that there should be so much poverty. I have a neighbor, who never has enough money. Their family has no savings, not much food in the kitchen, and every time there is a normal houshold maintenance issue, it becomes an emergency. In the last week, their water heater went out, it sprung a leak. They had to borrow money to get a replacement, which hopefully, they will be able to repay in a month or so. Of course, buying a water heater is only part of the problem, there also needs to be the transportaion of the water heater to their home. Then, there will be the installation. In the installation, there will be a few parts necessary. This neighbor is not handy with tools or other mechanical things, they are dependant on others for such things. Either they have to pay for installation, or they need to get someone else to do it. Well, they borrowed the money from a friend, and got a neighbor to buy the other small parts and do the install for them. When it rains, it poors. They have a leak in the plumbing at another part of their home, one, if left unchecked, will cause damage to the home, and create a large water bill. It all may make no difference, as the water company is about to turn out of their water for non payment of their bill. This is all in one week, and it is representative of this neighbor’s life as a whole, one financial emergency after another. My neighbor talks my ear off about their poverty.

I chose my neighbor as an example, because the neighbor is similar to many who tell me their woes on Worthychat. Let me be clear here - you are welcome to tell me about your problems, and I am willing to offer advice and prayer, I am not complaining. Bear with me here - I hope to make a few points which are helpful in life to get. Patience!

Okay, I just gave a story about a neighbor, who clearly would have fewer problems if only the family had more money. Let’s look and some more information about those 37 million poor people in the United States of America. The following information is provided by the Heritage Foundation, and comes from statistics from various government agencies.

Forty-six percent of all poor households actually own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio.

Seventy-six percent of poor households have air conditioning. By contrast, 30 years ago, only 36 percent of the entire U.S. population enjoyed air conditioning.

Only 6 percent of poor households are overcrowded. More than two-thirds have more than two rooms per person.

The average poor American has more living space than the average individual living in Paris, London, Vienna, Athens, and other cities throughout Europe. (These comparisons are to the average citizens in foreign countries, not to those classified as poor.)

Nearly three-quarters of poor households own a car; 30 percent own two or more cars.

Ninety-seven percent of poor households have a color television; over half own two or more color televisions.

Seventy-eight percent have a VCR or DVD player; 62 percent have cable or satellite TV reception.

Seventy-three percent own microwave ovens, more than half have a stereo, and a third have an automatic dishwasher.

So, the next time you hear a politician talking about the poor in the United States - ask yourself - do people with 3 bedroom homes, color TVs, cars, etc., really need that much help from from the government, it the form of taking more taxes from Americans not categorized as poor? That the governent takes from hardworking people to help people who are really well off, is an insult to people who are genuinely poor.

There are people in the world, especially outside the United States, who know actual poverty. People who have no roof over their head, people wo have no healthcare available, people who get so little nutrition, that you can count their bones.

Why does out government do this? The answer is quite simple. If you are a poor person in a third world country, there is not much that you can do for an American politician. If you are a “poor” person in America, one with only one color TV, the politician may be able to get your vote, if he promises you a second color TV - of course, they won’t put it that way. The same thing is true about the health care debate. The politicians are going to tell you that healthcare is broken in the United States. What they mean by that, is that heathcare insurance is expensive. They won’t bother to tell you though, that they are the same type of people, who caused the heathcare problems in the first place. Americans have choices on health care. One is to make enough money to pay for you own. Another is to make enough money to buy healthcare insurance, or work for a company that provided health care insurance. A third is to take advantage of health care provided in government programs, teaching organizations, charitible free clinics and other free or inexpensive heathcare alternatives. A forth is to depend on the charity of friends, family, churchmembers etc. A fifth is to travel to another country and get healthcare there. A sixth is to stop buying housing beyond your needs, cars, and entertainment an other non-necessities, and set money aside for heath relate ermergencies. Finally, you can choose to do without heathcare.

Now, I did not come here to discuss politics or discuss practical solutions to common problems. Suffice it to say that their are already programs in place, from both the government and charitible sources, that address real problems of poverty here, for the most part. Let’s begin to look at poverty, from the viewpoint of One more qualified to speak on the topic.

Luke 12:27-34

27 “Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!
29 And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30 For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.32 “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

NIV

Now, I imagine that these words are not foriegn to you. Maybe it has been a while since you read them, even longer since you actually pondered them. Join me in thinking about life in the time of Christ:

Roads were made of dirt or stones. There were no cars, no bicycles. Rich people rode on carts or carriages. The upper middle class, road on the back of an animal, the poor, walked. There was no refrigeration, no canning. Some things where dried out or preserved with salt etc. Think about how much your diet would be different back then. There were no book stores, let alone DVDs or color TV’s. No air conditioning. Your floor would likely have been dirt, stones, straw mats etc. Rodents and bugs in your home would have been the norm. No washing machines, no dishwashers, no microwave or gas ovens. Want to cook? Gather wood and start a fire. No toilets, no running water. As you go through your day tomorrow, everytime you touch something, ask yourself if it was available 2000 years ago. Now, realise also, that the conditions we are describing, are not the conditions of the poor, but the condtions of average people. Now, my neighbor, can in no way, be considered poor in that perspective. By the standards of Jesus time, my neighbor lives a standard of living which was not lived by even a king. Keep that in mind if you consider yourself poor. If you are reading this, you have access to a computer, perhaps you even own the computer. Perhaps you have internet service, and perhaps you have electricity. I am guessing that this is the case. The problems that my neighbor has, are self induced. The neighbor can learn the skills necessary to fix their own problems. The neighbor can sell their home, and move into a smaller one, in a less expensive neighborhood. The problem with my neighbor is, that the neighbor is living above their means. The solution, is to do a reality check, and live in a way they can actually afford, or earn more money. In most cases, this is possible in America.

Now, I haven’t dealved into spiritual aspects much here - don’t be concerned, consider this part one, my next blog will be related, and I will tie it altogether at that time. For now, spend some time noticing the things that bless your lives. Perhaps tomorrow, everytime you touch something, ask yourself if they it was available to the average person in Jesus time, or if it is available to people who are truly impoverised. As you do, remember to thank God for your American style poverty, and pray for those who are truly poor, perhaps, even thinking ov some way you might help them.

One secret to contentment, is just to realise that you are better off that you make yourself think, and stop focusing on what you don’t have. Seek first, the kingdom of God, and His righteousness.

Omegaman