Apple Cider

"Dad, can I have some Apple Cider?"  Elliot asked me.

"I guess so," I said.  "But I didn't think we had any Apple Cider."

"Yes, we do," Elliot said.  "There's a jug of it over there on the counter."

"I don't think you'll like that kind of Apple Cider," I said.

"Oh, I do, I really like Apple Cider," he replied, confidently.

"I'll give you just a little bit," I said, pouring a tiny amount into a cup.

"It smells kin of funny,"  Elliot told me and then he tasted and made an awful face.  "That's terrible," he said.  "It doesn't taste like Apple Cider at all!"

"That's because it's Apple Cider Vinegar," I told him.  "And Vinegar is pretty sour, even if it is made from Apple Cider in the beginning."

Jesus once asked a couple of His disciples if they were able to drink from the cup which He was going to drink, by which He meant were they willing to go endure suffering for His sake.  They answered confidently that they could.  At the same time, we know that they weren't ready at all to drink from that cup.

If I am truthful, I'm not one who enjoys drinking vinegar -- not for health reasons or any other reason.  I would far rather drink Apple Cider and yet, I cannot order my life in such a way as to avoid all hardship.  There are times when the cup I am given has more than its share of sourness in it.

Into this, comes God's promise that He will not leave me.  When I need Him most, He will be there to help me through.

Even when life has given me a cup of Apple Cider Vinegar to drink.