Finding God in a Cup of Coffee
Some mornings, grace arrives on tiptoe with a warm cup of coffee, rather than in a grand gesture or a dramatic revelation. Greeting the morning stillness while watching the gentle steam rising from the coffee cup, as golden sunlight spills across the kitchen table, brings a sacred quiet to my soul. These small, ordinary moments are easy to overlook, yet they carry the subtle presence of God. When we pause long enough to notice, even the simplest routines can become windows to divine wonder, reminding us that life is sprinkled with hidden treasures if we take the time to see them. We may even find God in a cup of coffee.
Spontaneity often defines God’s encounters with man. Consider the time He showed up at Abraham’s tent with two companions (Genesis 18), to Jacob at Peniel, (Genesis 32:24) or Moses in Midian (Exodus 3:1-10) Unplanned, these theophanies also took place at rather mundane times without the fanfare one might expect from the King of the Universe.
Abraham sat at the door of his tent resting in the shade on a hot day, Jacob was attempting to sleep, and Moses was busy at his everyday task of herding sheep. It seems as though God rather delights in revealing His presence in the most ordinary moments of our days, transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary.
Finding God in the Ordinary Holds Extraordinary Meaning
Yes, even something as ordinary as a morning cup of coffee ushers us into a divine encounter if we pause and choose to be present in the moment. For most, morning coffee is a grab and go affair whether at home or on the commute to work, school drop offs, or errands.
But what if it became the door to glimmers of grace?
What if it became the cue to stillness and communion with God?
A simple morning coffee becomes a sacred ritual when we approach it with mindfulness. Instead of distracted multitasking, we choose presence with God and enjoyment of the experience. In the stillness of His spontaneous presence, we wonder at the warmth of the cup in our hands, the gentle drifting aroma, and the sunlight peeking in the window.
In the noticing of small details, we awaken gratitude for God’s spontaneous presence in everyday moments.
Finding God in a cup of coffee reminds us of the subtle treasures taken for granted throughout our days. Within the ordinary moments we find God’s impromptu invitations for extraordinary connection with Him.
Mindfulness Transforms Routine into Reverence
Just as Abraham, Jacob, and Moses mired in the mundane met God in ordinary moments, we can too. Lingering with attentiveness to even insignificant details—steam rising from our cup, sunlight through the window, that first sip, all cultivates awareness of God’s grace in our lives.
From ordinary experiences, we find reminders that we see grace not only in the miraculous, but more often in the ordinary and familiar.
As we practice mindfully noticing glimmers of grace, our perspective shifts, allowing us the view of God’s fingerprints in life’s quiet corners, transforming routines into times of reverent awe.
Moments of Reflection Illuminate God’s Presence
My morning coffee offers me sacred space for greeting God and aligning myself with His presence before the day’s distractions and demands. With cup in hand, I breathe in not only the aroma of my favorite coffee, but I breathe in God’s presence, peace and grace.
It sets my intention for my day, but also for my quiet time in the Word and prayer. Lingering with cup in hand, as a mini-prayer and private space for gratitude, my heart awakens to God’s presence with me for another day. These moments speak calm over my heart and allow me to enter into my spiritual disciplines with God instead of doing them for God to earn His approval.
“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.”
Starting each day in this way primes me to notice other glimmers of grace throughout my day. As God speaks to me through events, people, things and all creation I behold His wonders in a kind smile, a child’s laughter, the hug of a stranger or fleeting beauty in nature.
Over time these micro moments build a habit of viewing life infused with God’s spontaneous presence even in the ordinary. Imagine, finding God in a cup of coffee on a mundane day when you feel lost and unseen, buried beneath a blanket of ordinary.
Could such a sacred encounter woo you into noticing His extraordinary grace at other times of your day?
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