One of life’s great pleasures is a cup of good coffee, especially that first one in the morning. Foggy headed you shuffle into the kitchen to brew what I like to refer to as the ‘nectar of the gods’; waiting for your cup of hot nectar with a slight bit of impatience and not wanting any intrusions from the world in general and most especially from the people you love and live with. Ok, so maybe that’s just me. This is the perspective I am most familiar with so it is from this point of view I write. No attempts at objectivity today!
People can be picky about coffee. Were this not so, Starbucks and others would not be able to charge an outrageous amount for their coffee. My personal theory about why people will pay big bucks at Starbucks is that it feels like an obtainable indulgence to pamper oneself in a hectic world. The coffee IS good, no doubt, but I believe it is the whole act of treating oneself that has folks lined up. A little luxury in a paper cup is far better than no luxury at all.
For most of us, it is the coffee we make at home that we indulge in most often. My attitudes about and tastes in coffee have evolved over the years. But nothing has evolved more than the coffeemaker itself; from the lowly pot where both ground beans and water were thrown in to the most sophisticated automatic machines that do everything but drink the coffee for you. Coffee makers have come a long way.
The irony of this is that not matter how space-age looking you machine may be it will still be taken down by the tiny miniscule deposits of minerals in the water. They work like an invisible army to coat and clog the inner workings of the machine. Over time, this will cause the quality of taste of your coffee to suffer because the required water temperature to brew optimum flavored coffee will not be reached. I have to replace our machine every few years because of this painfully familiar problem. At first, the efforts to de-mineralize the machine bring some relief but it is only a matter of time. Nothing is more disappointing than waiting in anticipation for that first sip only to discover upon arrival that the flavor never made it to the cup; it is weak and lacking in every area: color, flavor and temperature! Makes you want to stomp your foot and throw the cup…ok, that may just be me again.
As I sit here with my post breakfast cup of coffee, I am struck by the notion that the demise of the humble coffee maker by invisible mineral forces is very much like the forces just waiting to take us and our faith walk down. If we are not constantly diligent and aware, seemingly unrelated and unimpressive actions and/or habits can eat away at the foundation we stand on like spiritual termites. A snarky comment here and there may not seem threatening but it cracks opens the door for the termite-like tormentor to tiptoe ever so silently in. A bit of pride here, a little harmless lie there and before you know it; the cumulative build-up has desensitized us to the very things causing the damage, just like with the coffee maker. Once on fire for the Lord, our walk becomes weak and lukewarm.
Revelation 3:15-16 I know your [record of] works and what you are doing; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of My mouth!
I saw a study once about these verses. In a nutshell it said that cold water is refreshing and hot water is healing, both good things but in Biblical times, lukewarm water was used to purge the belly. It made people sick in a hugging the toilet kind of way. So, from that perspective lukewarm was neither refreshing nor healing and of no good use. Not what we aspire to as Christians is it? Yet, is a very real possibility when the build-up of corrosion takes place in our lives.
The next time you burn your mouth with a cup of coffee, rather than complaining, maybe we can choose to see the benefit of not being lukewarm! Piping hot for me, please!
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