My morning routine begins the same way every day. My alarm sounds at approximately 6:30 a.m., pulling me out of sweet dreamland and into the real world. Not wanting to wake my pregnant wife, I slap the alarm into silence and then struggle to open my eyes. The heaviness in my arms and legs makes me wonder for a few, brief moments if I was doing strenuous lifting in my sleep. Then I crawl out of bed and stumble my way into the shower. The shower helps wash the sleep from my brain, but my mind doesn't truly kick into gear until I take my first sip of coffee.

I love coffee. I love the beautiful brown color, the powerful, earthy aroma, and the semi-bitter taste of a well brewed cup. I love the feel of the hot liquid washing down my throat. I get much pleasure and joy from the simple act of drinking a cup of coffee. Yet how often do I thank God for the gift of coffee? He didn't need to give me coffee. He could have made everything bland and unexciting to the taste, but He didn't. In His kindness and creativity, He created coffee for the enjoyment of billions of people, including me. We serve an extravagantly generous God who loves to give extravagant gifts to those He created. Coffee is one of those gifts.

I have the opportunity to worship God with each cup of coffee that I drink. How? Colossians 3:17 makes it clear. It says, "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." We can drink coffee for the glory of God if our drinking is accompanied by thanksgiving to God. What a simple, yet profound thought. Each cup of coffee can be an occasion for worship and thanksgiving to God!

Let us give thanks to God today for the simple pleasure of drinking coffee. Or, if you're not a coffee fan, thank God for the other pleasures He allows you to enjoy. Let us give thanks for coffee, and orange juice, and bagels, and Frappucino's, and mocha lattes. In doing so, we will bring honor to God.