Richly to Enjoy

The aroma of Starbucks coffee: Mmmm... There is no better way to start your day! Anytime I brew a pot of Starbucks—preferably Cafe Verona blend—I’m transported into a Starbucks cafe and to its accompanying ambience. I hear the slow, relaxing music and the whir of the espresso machines frothing the milk for cappuccino, and with my journal in hand I know my mind can rest here. It’s a place where I can be alone and still enjoy the feeling of people around me. When I go to Starbucks in the comfort of my home I am also teleported to the patio cafes of Europe, where I sat in awe of the beauty around me. The history of the buildings—if walls could talk! The myriad languages surrounding me... the glorious accent with which the server addresses me in English! The crunch and clank of feet on the cobblestones... the clatter of dishes inside the establishment...

I sat outside such a patio cafe in Amsterdam, savouring a Dutch cappuccino with one of my girlfriends, who loves the experience as much as I. We talked about how blessed we are. God truly has given us all things richly to enjoy! The Scripture is one we hear often. Don’t forget the beginning of that same verse: “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;” (I Timothy 6:17). The riches or enjoyable things in life are not sin. The wrong is in ones focus: trusting in riches, or making “things” everything in our lives. When our focus is on the gifts more than the Giver, we miss out on the real joy He intends. HE is the real source of all that is good in our lives.

So sit back, enjoy your Starbucks experience, and thank the One Who makes it all possible in your life.