Fact: I’m not Starbucks. And oh hey, neither are you.
I’m a recovering people-pleaser. I spent the early years of my life working for the approval for others: My family, friends, teachers, anyone in authority, and even (get this) strangers! (What?!?)
That was my fuel. My purpose. My focus.
And my thorn.
It was a hard lesson to learn, but I realized that trying to be everything to everyone was practically debilitating. It was constantly stressed, living the first part of Proverbs 29:25 (MSG) and ignoring the second part: “The fear of human opinion disables, but trusting in God protects us from that.”
The pressure I was putting on myself to please those around me (many people who wouldn’t even remember what I did/didn’t do!) was not allowing God to transform me into my best self for His glory. In fact, the stress and misguided focus was causing me to be a big ol’ heifer to the people who really DID matter in my life (God, husband, kids, etc.) That tastes more bitter than my husband’s extra strong, double shot of plain morning espresso. Yuck.
Finally, FINALLY, I learned: I’m not Starbucks. When someone came to me and said they wanted a (figurative) “Extra hot, grande, caramel macchiato with three pumps of syrup, no whip, an extra shot of espresso, double cup, RIGHT NOW” I would pull out all the stops to make it happen. When the next person wanted a tall hot tea with honey, and the next wanted a Venti-iced Americano with a splash of almond milk and sugar-free vanilla, it was my job to deliver. You name it, I was your gal.
But guess what? I’m not Starbucks. Neither are you. We can’t be everything to everyone. (That’s God’s job!) Some days, if my cup is overflowing, I can accommodate a majority of other people’s requests, and it’s a joy to do so!
However, sometimes it is even more important for me to have the courage to tell others that plain, black, day-old, room-temperature coffee (probably with a few grounds at the bottom) is all that on the menu at the moment. Sorry, but take it or leave it. (And you can sure come back tomorrow to see if I’ve got something brewed up fresh!)
Dear friends, if you are feeling weary, burned out or fearful of what other people think, grab your favorite beverage, take a long sip and remember: If I’m not Starbucks to others, neither are you. Let Starbucks be Starbucks and God be God. I hear they are both much better at their jobs than we could ever be (and that second one never confuses our orders or gets overwhelmed with our requests!)
It’s a work in progress. Sometimes the fear of human opinion still threatens to disable me… But I remember that trusting in God does, in fact, protect me from that. I’m not Starbucks. That’s a fact. And that is totally OK.
Oh, Sharita, I love you. I so needed to have this lesson this morning. Went to bed crying last night and woke up exhausted. I have printed the lesson and the verse to read it anytime I need it, in the next few days. So much going on and trying to fix it all. God must have whispered in your ear to write this. Thank you.