Stories and Coffee

He decreed statutes for Jacob
    and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
    to teach their children,
 so the next generation would know them,
    even the children yet to be born,
    and they in turn would tell their children.
 Then they would put their trust in God
    and would not forget his deeds
    but would keep his commands.

Psalm 78:5-7

Today I was blessed to be able to spend some time with a friend, just talking, sharing life, encouraging each other.  I do not drink much coffee ...about two cups a year.  However, I am developing a taste for coffee...just because I love spending time with my coffee-drinking friends.  Mocha Bianca is the choice I make so far...perhaps I will expand my horizons one day...but so far, I like the Mocha Bianca.
My eldest son loves coffee.  He and I have been for coffee twice....once to say good-bye to friends who were moving and the other time to celebrate our homeschool year being over and his graduation from high school.  I think going to coffee is an excellent way to develop friendships, keep communication open, and celebrate life.
I have thought about this and contrasted it to those who may decide to drink alcohol because their friends drink alcohol.  The differences are that alcohol is not a drink you can consume without it changing who you are.  Coffee does not change your personality.  Alcohol is a drink that can cause problems.  Coffee...not so much, unless you drink it right before bed and it keeps you up at night.   Alcohol is a drink that is illegal for people under certain ages.  Coffee is for anyone.  Alcohol kills brain cells.  Coffee does not.
When drinking alcohol with friends, it doesn't become about communication and relationships.  It becomes about being subject to the influence of the alcohol on you and about seeing the influence of it on your friends...and neither is good.
Coffee drinking does not cause other Christians to stumble.  Alcohol drinking is a huge boulder along the path of life that people trip on.
Coffee addiction doesn't tear families apart.  Alcohol addiction does.
So if faced with the choice of  "Do I drink coffee with my friends, or do I drink alcohol with my friends?" consider these things.  Choose Coffee.

Well, that was a side road.,..but I enjoyed going down it and the views along the way :)
The part I enjoyed while drinking the coffee was sharing with my friend and listening to her share about God's deeds.  About how we have learned to trust God and how we can continue to trust Him.

Sharing the stories of how God has worked in our lives encourages others.  I like to hear such stories.  I like to hear of how God worked things out.
For instance, a man I highly respect (the dad of my high school best friend) has been in the hospital this week with a serious blood infection.  Mr. Spicer.  He has the added difficulty of being  paralyzed and one of his wounds that would not heal caused the infection to enter his blood stream.  We were told at church to pray for him because he would be having to be on IV antibiotics for six weeks to cure the infection.  He was on the IV antibiotics for about 5 days...and the doctors did tests to see how he was doing...he is cured!! No infection in the blood!  Praise the Lord!  For it is His doing when healing occurs!   Thank You, God.

My friend shared a story with me that their guest speaker shared on Sunday.  It was of Moses when the Israelites were doing battle and the Lord told him to keep his hands lifted up and the Israelites would win the battle.  The warriors were fighting and glancing at Moses and encouraged to know that they were winning and that his hands were up.  But as he grew tired and his hands started to lower , the warriors began to do poorly in the battle.  They looked up to Moses and could not see his hands lifted and were discouraged and began to lose.  But  Moses' had two people who helped him to lift up and hold up his arms, and the Israelites began to win the battle again and defeated the enemy.  It is through encouragement to each other in the Lord, by reminding each other of how great He is and of how good He is and of all He has done before, that we can fight strongly in the battle.  The question that the speaker asked was this:  Who got tired first....those fighting in the battle, or the one doing the encouraging?  I had never thought of that .  It does get tiring sometimes to be constantly in prayer, or to keep on encouraging others, even in the face of battle.  And even the encouragers need those to come along side of them and help lift their hands to heaven from where our help comes.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.  Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.     Galations 6:9-10

We should encourage our church families and our Christian friends.  That is part of our role here on this earth.  To do good to all people...but especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

I left the coffee shop with a lighter heart this morning, just from having sat across the table with a friend who I will spend eternity with, drinking coffee and reminding each other of how good God is, of how miraculous He works in our lives.

Today I heard God's whisper in a friend's conversation and in the coffee.  Where did you hear Him today?