Lessons From My Coffee Pot
Originally Posted on stephencaldwellwrites.com on Sep 14, 2026Posted to Legacy Men’s Blog with consent.My coffee pot had been speaking to me.
Not literally, of course. No need to call in the white coats, at least not yet.
It was speaking as a personification, which, come to think of it, is pretty common in my life.
Personifications, similes, and metaphors, not to mention hyperboles, idioms, alliterations, and the occasional onomatopoeia or oxymoron. They’re all around me – in nature, in mental images, in dreams, and in inanimate objects such as coffee pots.
Frankly, it’s hard to keep them straight.
What was the coffee pot saying, you ask?
The best way I can explain it is by starting with Proverbs 15:28 – “The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.”
The coffee pot, in other words, became a metaphor for controlling my speech. No, wait, I mean simile. My speech is like a pot of coffee . . . or so said my coffee pot.
Yeah, that’s a simile. And a personification.
I’m not a coffee snob, mind you. I don’t know how to use a French press, I don’t carry a portable scale and a hand grinder when I travel, and I can’t tell you the difference between a bean grown in Honduras and one farmed in Vietnam.
I just know good coffee (defined as “coffee I like”) begins with beans that are finely ground into something called a “breakfast blend” (usually by the fine folks at Folgers) before ending up in the moderately expensive brewing machine my wife got me once for Christmas.
And because I’m not always wide awake at 5 a.m., I also know what happens if you don’t filter your coffee. Regardless of the quality of the beans or your method for brewing them, the pot gushes bitter junk you can’t drink and that you would never serve to anyone else.
That’s how my speech is like a pot of coffee. Both need a filter or they gush out bitter junk.
Just because I’m thinking something, doesn’t mean I need to say it (or write it). And when I need to say something, I first need to filter it appropriately. Wisely.
We live in a world where words more commonly flow from an open fire hose than a filtered coffee pot.
And we are tempted to gush out every opinion that’s percolating in our mind with little regard for whether it will help or damage our spiritual health or our relationships with others. At least that’s been my bad habit.
Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), so it’s not surprising that the Bible has plenty to say about the value of filtering our speech. Here are a few reasons it tells me to value speech that’s filtered like good coffee.
It brings healing, not pain. Proverbs 12:18 says, “The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
It benefits others. Ephesians 4:29 says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” And Proverbs 15:4 says, “The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”
It strengthens relationships. Proverbs 17:9 says, “Whoever would foster love covers an offense, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.” And Proverbs 26:10 says, “Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.”
It leads to wisdom and wise responses. Colossians 4:6 says, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
It’s a form of self-protection. Proverbs 21:23 says, “Those who guard their mouths and tongues keep themselves from calamity.” And Proverbs 10:19 says, “Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues.”
It’s for my good. 1 Peter 3:10 says, “For, ‘Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.’” And Matthew 15:11 says, “What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
I have found a simple truth about my coffee pot. The quality of the coffee it makes depends largely on the quality of the coffee I put into it and whether I use a filter to block the impurities. That’s what I want from my words, as well.