Diverse a' Teas!

So, as my friendly wait staff at the best coffee shop in the country have duly informed me... there is more to the world than Chai tea!
Shocking, I know! I had formerly been completely convinced that there was only one kind of drink to be had at any coffee shop, and while Chai still holds a very dear spot in my heart, I have discovered the beauty of many different tea lattes here recently. Yesterday it was a peppermint, lemon, honey tea latte! Amazing, and very therapeutic... imagine if you had a cold! Then today it is a tropical tea latte, which has hints of citrus! Also delicious and fruity!
So, what does discovering different kinds of teas have to do with anything? Great question... I had a discussion with one of my good friends the other day about how we are similar and how we are different, (and let me tell you right now, there is probably more on the different end of life.) We were actually talking together and questioning how we were even friends at all, because our lives are so opposite. At the time, I told him that I would have to write a blog post about it, but when I got back to the computer nothing was coming.
Now, as I am sitting here enjoying my diversity in teas, I think back to the conversation, and realize that God gives us so many different people in our lives, (even those who are strangely different from us) for specific reasons. Sometimes we learn the most from people that we are really, really not similar with at all! The way they look at life gives us insight into our own all to often; and their zeal for new causes, leaves us questioning our complacency in our own. How often do they introduce us to new loves, new passions, new ideas, new joys?
Now, think for a minute about how often you shut down people that are really different than you. How often do you completely disregard them as a person, or discount what they have to say about an issue because it is something that you are not familiar with. Are we resisting the diversity that will bring growth? Are we shutting out exactly what God wants to pour into our lives?