Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him.

~Luke 24:31 NLT

Sometimes, we try to communicate something to a child, a student, or even an adult, and we get a blank look. The expression that asks, “What language are you speaking?” Others don’t always understand God’s truths the moment we speak them. The coffee police taught me that.

I was once a public school teacher. During third-period study hall, I brewed coffee in my back room to enjoy while the students studied. The students often commented how they loved the aroma. One day, the staff received a memorandum from the principal stating that the school prohibited individual coffee makers due to safety and cost issues.

Grudgingly, I complied with the request. Shortly afterward, a student entered the room and commented, “Mr. Barnes, why did you stop making coffee?” “The coffee police got me,” I replied. I then explained the memo. The student quickly responded, “That’s okay, Mr. Barnes. We won’t tell.”

I knew I faced a teachable moment. So, I waited until the rest of the class arrived to discuss the absent coffeemaker. I told them the issue did not entail getting caught but doing the right thing. Our principal would probably never come to my classroom to check for contraband, but I would know I had done the wrong thing.

The students looked at me as if I were from the moon’s backside. The expressions on their faces spoke volumes. If you don’t get caught, what is the difference? I then asked them a question that further puzzled them. “If I am not willing to follow the rules that our principal gives me, why should I expect you to adhere to my classroom guidelines?”

I got the blank stare again, which communicated that they were clueless. I knew I was not getting any further with them. Yet, one day, some will find themselves in a situation involving submission, authority, and integrity. God will upload this incident from the study hall from their spiritual memory bank. A light will come on in their minds, and they will say, “That is what old Mr. Barnes meant that day.”

Information does not change us, but revelation does. God waits for our hearts to be ready to receive His teachable moment. The Spirit then quickens the information we already have and opens our spiritual eyes to comprehend revealed truth.

God waited until after Jesus’ resurrection to fully reveal many things the Lord told His disciples before His death. The incident on the road to Emmaus is one example. The disciples asked, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?” The Word of God always accomplishes its purpose. Head knowledge becomes heart revelation.

Be encouraged. You will see the fruit of your efforts in due season. One day, the students in my story may realize what F.B. Meyer once said: “Do right because it is right to do right.”

Do the right thing, so the coffee police won’t catch you–and because it’s the right thing to do.

Father, prompt me to do the right thing whether no one is looking or everyone is looking. 

Genre: Non-fiction

Copyright 2025: The Coffee Police: Ken Barnes: All Rights Reserved