On Jan. 7 2023, a man named Jesse O’Dell goes through a Starbucks drive-thru in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He orders two beverages, ones for himself and one for his wife. When presented with the computerized tip option, he selected “no tip” and due to an error, a tip of over four thousand was charged to his credit card, along with the $11.83 cost for both drinks.

I had seen some headlines about this on different newsfeeds over the past few days. However, it was not until a couple of days ago that I read about the exact amount of the gratuity charged to his card.

The tip totaled $4,444.44! (Insert here the emoji face with stars for eyes)

It was at that moment that my mind shifted from borderline curiosity to the inspiration to unpack this manifestation event from a spiritual perspective.

Before I geek out over the exact amount of the tip, allow me to address the broader conversation regarding so-called “tipping culture” that you have read about. In years past, there was a physical tip jar, and if you had an extra buck or two in your purse or wallet, you might have left a tip after paying for your drink.

Along comes the pandemic, which accelerated the trend of using less physical currency and making more transactions with debit and credit cards, either at the point of sale, or beforehand via an app on your smart device.

The physical tip jar is replaced by the tip option on the tablet or pad that the customer uses to pay for their transaction. Suddenly there is unspoken pressure to always add a tip, because it is no longer a question about whether or not you have a couple of extra dollar bills on you at that precise moment.

When reading this news story, some may conclude that this is a textbook example of the evil of tipping culture, how a man who dared to select the “no tip” option was financially taken advantage of by the behemoth coffee chain. (Insert here the angry emoji face… or the emoji face with steam coming out of its nostrils)

As for Jesse O’Dell, the consequence of the $4,444.44 error is that while he was trying for weeks to sort this out between Starbucks and his credit card company, he decided to cancel a “once in a lifetime” planned family trip to Thailand, where his wife is from. The couple has four daughters.

His credit card company disputed the gratuity, which Starbucks allegedly had initially claimed was a “legitimate charge.” After speaking to multiple managers, Mr. O’Dell was told that he would be mailed two checks to cover the total amount of the tip. These checks arrived in late January, but bounced.

Yeah, how do checks from such a large corporation bounce? How does that happen?

Since the time of the incident, replacement checks were mailed, which he was successfully able to cash.

Mr. O’Dell and his wife’s habit of going to Starbucks a few times a week is apparently over. (Insert here the Keep Calm and Carry On meme…?)

Now, I know a least a few heartstrings were pulled when folks read about the “once in lifetime” family trip to Thailand having to be cancelled.

Let us examine this from a spiritual perspective, shall we?

The tip amount of 4,444.44 clearly has “angels” written all over it.

My intuition tells me that his and her birth angels, and the birth angels of their four daughters, were involved in this manifestation event.

Why would their angels intervene?

Quite possibly, to keep the family out of harm’s way. There may be a natural disaster in that timeline for Thailand, like a tsunami. On the other hand, perhaps the family may have ended up in the “wrong place at the wrong time” and have met with foul play of some kind.

We all have our spiritual exit points, and perhaps it was not the time for this family to end their current individual and collective incarnations, if they were indeed in the path of life-threatening danger.

My other main spiritual takeaway is to call into question how we unconsciously are prone to use language that is rooted in lack, limitation and scarcity.

When someone refers to a “once in a lifetime” experience, they are energetically expressing some degree of personal unworthiness.

I am not immune from this tendency. If you invited me to spend three or four weeks visiting the pyramids, temples and other ancient sites in Egypt, I would consider that to be so incredible that I may believe that that such an excursion will happen only once in my current lifetime.

 Yet there are undoubtedly some who experience vacations of such grandeur every single year.

In other words, they have dropped the limiting belief that such trips only happen once in a lifetime. They are more fully tapped into the cosmic Law of Abundance.

When the dust settles from the O’Dell family’s strange incident with the Starbucks tip, they may attract the inspiration to re-plan their Thailand trip. Even if they were to select the same dates for the trip, it would be in different timeline, for the family has expanded through this key manifestation event that has altered their individual and collective soul trajectories.

And, Mr. O’Dell having played the role of the proverbial David pitted against the Goliath that is Starbucks and emerged victorious, may attract more personal worthiness and work towards greater abundance for his family go on many more incredible vacations abroad.

In fact, he and his wife may look back on the strange Starbucks tip incident years from now and conclude that this catalyzing experience was the best thing to have ever happened to them.

Look for the spiritual lessons and related opportunities for growth in all of your manifestation events, my friends!

With All of My Love,

Daniel