There are millions of people in this country who begin every morning with a cup of coffee. Without it they feel as though something is missing in their morning routine, and the day is left incomplete, or certainly more difficult.
From a spiritual perspective, the same should hold true for the Christian when it comes to our lives. Our study of the Scriptures, prayer lives and time spent meditating on the things of God should be such an integrated part of our lives to the point that a day where any of those things does not occur is considered an incomplete day.
On Sunday mornings at the congregation here, we have a forty-five minute devotional of songs, prayers and Scripture reading to start off the day. My wife recently commented that this devotional was her cup of coffee on Sunday mornings to get her mind focused and ready for what the rest of the day would bring. In pondering it, I found that it holds the same effect for me. I wish more congregations of the Lord’s church would consider what a powerful asset such a program could be to the attitude and mindset of the Lord’s people beginning each Lord’s Day.
However, should such a “cup of coffee” be confined to only the Lord’s Day? Certainly, if time spent with the Word of God and giving honor and praise to Him on the first day of the week is beneficial to the mentality of the Christian, doing the same thing on days two through seven should accomplish the same goal. Paul wrote on many occasions concerning the approach of the Christian to daily life (1 Thessalonians 5:14-22; Philippians 4:4-13). In each instance, the central component to the proper attitude is time spent before God and His Word.
Every Christian, whether they have been a member of the church for thirty years or thirty minutes, needs constant, daily time with God to keep in the right mindset and on the right track. The best time for that type of meditation is at the beginning of each day, before the trials, struggles, stress and business of each day settles in the crosshairs of our focus.
Let me challenge you to have a spiritual cup of coffee every day. Spend at least fifteen or twenty minutes each morning in study, prayer and meditation. If it means getting up that amount of time earlier than usual, do it. Before long, it will become a part of your daily routine and, like all other habits, you will feel like your day is incomplete without it. However, unlike most other habits, this one can positively affect every aspect of our lives on a daily basis. Try it. It just might make each day a little easier and bring each blessing into a little better focus.
