Starbucks and Jesus

Tanner scheduled a play date at the house this morning so I made the conscious decision that this would be a good time to make a Starbucks run. Rather than playing zone defense for the next two hours trying to defend my house from 4 children under the age of 3, I am sitting quietly on the outside patio of the Starbucks down the street. True application of wisdom taking place. Anyway, as I sit here and cherish my Tall Italian Roast coffee, the Spirit takes a seat next to me and takes advantage of this quiet time to offer His wisdom aimed directly at my heart. I'll share with you our time together.

I am a drink person. I love coffee every morning, tea in the afternoon, and a nice glass of wine or cold Sam Adams in the evening. I have a coffee maker with a timer on it so I can prepare the coffee before I go to bed and wake up with a fresh pot brewed for me each morning. I love my morning coffee time. As you can see, I even took careful consideration as to what kind of coffee maker to buy in order to enjoy it even more. I love sitting at a coffee shop and enjoying various kinds of coffee from all over the world. Coffee is something I desire and something that I go out of my way for each and every day to enjoy. If I go a day without a cup, I miss it. Quiet time with a cup of coffee, I desire, but what about quiet time with my Father in heaven? Do I desire communion with God each and every day and pursue Him with the same consistency that I pursue Starbucks? Is a day without a cup of coffee a bigger bummer to me than a day without conversation with God? I may sound silly (thats debatable) but there's some truth here.

"But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." - Jesus

I, personally, do not know how to pray as I ought. I am currently reading a great book titled, With Christ in the School of Prayer (Murray), and it encourages me to be taught by Jesus as to how to pray. Jesus never taught His disciples how to preach only how to pray. Jesus tells us to seek God in the secret places and that is where He awaits for us - basically, to seek out quiet time with God. To shut out the world and to shut yourself in with God. I find a way to make time for a cup of coffee every single day, but I fail to make time for a conversation with God each day. Father, free me from the thought of prayer as a duty or burden and may my secret place be my most treasured piece of earth. Yes, may my secret place with God be more treasured than Starbucks.

A humble student in the school of prayer,

- Terry Evans