Microwaving Grace

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Most nights I go to bed anticipating the first hot cup of coffee I’ll have in the morning. If you’re not a coffee drinker, you might not understand this, but maybe you have another drink or treat you look forward to each day.

One particular morning, I woke up before dawn and headed to the kitchen to grab my much-anticipated first cup. At this time of day, I cannot be held accountable for what I do, because my brain is working at only about 30 percent. I eagerly poured my cup of caffeine and topped it off with a splash of vanilla creamer.

I lifted it to my mouth for the first sip and received a rude awakening. The coffee was cold! I wasn’t met with the hot, fresh sip I was hoping for but an old, cold cup of coffee. No amount of creamer, whipped cream, or microwaving would help this pitiful brew. It certainly woke me up—just not in the way I’d anticipated! Somehow when I’d prepped our coffeepot the night before, I started it instead of setting it on the timer.

As I made a fresh pot of coffee, I remembered that God is a giver of fresh grace, not stale mercy or leftover hope. He does not give his children scraps or leftovers of his love. Instead, he lavishly pours fresh mercy on our needy hearts every day, filling our empty cups with exactly what we need.

As followers of Jesus, we should live in a way that shows those around us this refreshing truth: God’s grace is real and abundant and can be found only in Christ. All too often, we put the world before the Word and our love for Jesus grows cold. When our priorities are out of place, we live according to the desires of our flesh rather than the power of the Holy Spirit (see Romans 8:6-10). But we don’t have to live like God’s grace is an old, cold cup of coffee—grumbling and complaining. We can joyfully soak in his mercies each day, like that first sip of piping hot coffee.

Even when our love for God grows stale, his grace is greater. He can warm our cold souls again through the power of his Word and the work of the Holy Spirit. On that morning when my lips were greeted with cold coffee, I started the pot again and refreshed my cup, sipping with a level of gratitude that wouldn’t have been there had I not tasted the stale coffee.

However your soul is feeling today—cold, lukewarm, or piping hot—bring Jesus your empty cup and let him fill it with new morning mercies and fresh grace.

Word before World God’s mercies are new not only in the morning but also in the afternoon and in the evening (and in every hour between).

Grow in Grace In the times when it feels like your love for God has grown cold, read Psalm 119:97-104 and refresh your soul in God’s Word.