Morning Coffee

How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! Selah Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength; each one appears before God in Zion. O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed! For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you! (Psalm 84 ESV). Perhaps you are like I once was; you need your morning coffee. You need the real stuff. Statistics point to the fact that 75% of all Americans are in this same position. We are a group that drinks some coffee product every day at some time during the day. Coffee has become such an important part of our lifestyle that very profitable businesses have been developed to serve nothing but coffee. And, it seems contained to our generation more than any other generation. Young people are not so addicted. Only 61% of their population drink coffee each day. Perhaps their addiction is to Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, or Coke! Some studies have been done and the new “fix” comes from caffeinated products like “Red Bull.” Fortunately I no longer fight that battle as I have been off caffeine for some time. I am reminded, however, how easy it is to make habits and so hard to break them! One of those that have served me well in the past years is the habit of spending time with God in the morning. That has been a habit that has proven to be a very good one! There have been times when I “skipped” it, but for the most part, I always return to it as a source of strength and comfort. The writer of Psalm 84 was like that also. It must have been easy for him as he apparently worked at the temple. It is interesting to see the difference in his life when he was unable to continue in the presence of the Lord. We don’t know exactly what circumstance it was, but something happened, whether invasion or illness or other reason, which prevented his being there. His reaction was similar to mine when my morning coffee comes late. He wanted to be near God, in the temple, more than anything. He mentioned yearning and fainting. There are many things we want badly. I wonder if God's presence is on that list? We need God much more than we realize. He is the source of our spiritual life. If we are Christians, we cannot make it one day without God's enablement. We need Him bad. Why don't we feel like it? Granted, we shouldn't rely too much on emotion. As the writer of Psalm 84 demonstrated, however, when we set our emotions in the right direction, our walk with God is enhanced. Don't look at your quiet time as drudgery. Think of it as entering God's presence. Learn to enjoy Him. Oh, you can bring coffee too!