COFFEE WITH GOD

Starbucks has become a national phenomenon in a very short period of time. There's one on every corner.

People have been drinking coffee for ages, so what's the BIG DEAL?

I am convinced that Starbucks is NOT about the coffee...it's about the comraderie.

You rarely see people drinking coffee alone in Starbucks, unless maybe they are waiting on someone to join them.

Starbucks has become the local "watering hole" so to speak. The place where friends gather to chat; business associates make deals; couples share a quiet moment.

Do you like yours black or with lots of sugar? Prefer espresso or latte? Straight up or flavored? Doesn't really matter....just as long as you have someone to share it with.

In years past, neighbors used to chat over the back fence. Old retired gentlemen gathered at the local drug store. Women caught up on the gossip at the local beauty parlor. In the 21st century, people do Starbucks!

Again, the key element, however, is not the coffee, it's the connection.

I am blessed to have a host of friends and acquaintances. Some go back to my childhood, others are new. But all are blessings. And, I enjoy nothing better than having lunch with them. It always brightens my day.

So, you ask...why all the talk about Starbucks and coffee??????

I don't do Starbucks. Nothing against Starbucks, but I usually only drink one cup of coffee a day, and that is first thing in the morning. I DO share with a friend, just not at Starbucks.

You see, I begin my day having coffee with God. There is no better start to the day!

When I was a teenager, I discovered a little devotional book entitled Open Windows. It came at a time when I really needed encouragement. I still have many of the devotional pages that were so meaningful to me at that time stored safely away in a file. But I don't have to look at them to remember what many of them said.

One of my favorite ones I had taped to my dresser mirror for years. It was one phrase:

If you ask God to direct your steps in the morning

You won't have to ask Him to forgive you for taking the wrong

path in the evening.

I guess that began my journey with God in the mornings. Although I have not always been a morning person, I have always made an attempt to connect with Him early in my day. It has not always been easy, especially when my children were small. Often in those days it was just a snatch of a few minutes early....the other snatches throughout my day as I could work it in.

Now that my house is quiet, my early morning time with God is the most precious part of my day. I love sitting quietly with Him on the porch as I sip my coffee and drink in the beauty of the day or curled up on my sofa with Bible and devotional.

Yes, I'd rather begin my day having coffee with God and connecting with Him than just about anything else I can think of. I look forward to it every morning. It prepares me for the day like no $4.95 cup of joe ever could, and it puts me in touch with the One who knows me like no other. I don't have to get dressed or get in my car. I don't have to put on makeup or be sure I'm fashionably dressed.

Coffee with God. Yes...there's no better way to start your day. Why not pour yourself a cup right now and join Him. He's waiting for you.