Your Morning Coffee 05/16/2025

Good Morning!

Welcome to your morning coffee! May our Heavenly Father call you close to His side today. Father, we need you. We need your peace and your comfort. We need your mercy and your grace. We all do. But there are some of us who have suffered so much and been so faithful though it all. Because of you, Father. They persevere in faithfulness because of your faithfulness Father. Because of your faithfulness, Jesus. Because of your faithfulness, Holy Spirit, our comforter and guide. God, you are with us. Thank you for how you love us! Amen.

Your Morning Song: "The Great Adventure" by Steven Curtis Chapman

Your Morning Scripture: Psalm 23:5

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

...

How often do you think about the hospitality of God?

Not often? Honestly, me neither. It isn't something I regularly ponder.

But what about it? Before we dig into it together, what does it mean, the "hospitality of God?"

How do you show hospitality to others? When you invite them into your home or your office, or your personal space of any kind (vehicle, deer stand, etc), you see to their needs and their comfort. Need any of this? Want some of this? Something to eat or drink?

Even nowadays showing hospitality to someone in your own place/space is an important, meaningful thing. But the further back in time you go, this idea of showing hospitality is even more valued in culture. It a very interesting socio-political(ish) way of showing both who you were, and what your opinion was of your guest.

What then, is the hospitality of God? The Psalmist here makes a few interesting statements that initially might seem odd to us across the vast gulf of years and culture (East v. West). First, to be in relationship with our God is to be welcomed into His household. He does not live in any earthly abode built by human hands. But instead, He is everywhere, and is in control of everything, and so there is no place that He cannot and does not claim.

To His children then, in the household of His presence, God prepares a table in the presence of their enemies.

A table, or a feast. Food. And enemies. Got any enemies? Okay, maybe. Some people you don't get along with. God give you some good food in front of them recently? No? Yeah, me neither.

What does this mean then? What feast? What enemies?

The enemies can certainly be people, but also anything else that hurts you. Grief and suffering of any kind, the thousands of little deaths we are constantly dying in a world we broke with our sin.

The table/feast is more than just food, more than bread. The table is God's way of living which is filled with all manner of good things. He makes us able to obey Him and then fill us up with all manner of good things. Our basic needs? Certainly! Peace, stillness, maturity, comfort, support, contentment and so much more? For God's children? Absolutely.

In the presence of your enemies, human and of the world alike, God invites us to a feast of intimacy with Him, of our needs and so much more. No matter what is going on in our life, God is lavishing His love on us, both body and Spirit.

God is making Himself clear to you, His children. He loves you and loves to show you His hospitality.

The rest of the verse is more of the same. The anointing is not one like what was done to signify kings (Samuel the prophet anointed David as the next king of Israel, which is why many people confuse that anointing with this kind in Pslam 23). It was done to very honored guests to refresh and restore them. To give them comfort and make them look and feel good.

God daily gives us His mercies, fresh and anew. He longs to walk closely with us in life, if we will turn our attentions and attitudes towards Him and His ways. He wants to refresh you. He wants to daily restore you.

And the best host would have paid close attention to their guest's cup at the table. If the host cherished the guest, the guest's cup would never be empty, and if so, only for a moment.

I am thinking of a certain person right now, and this is for them. But as is often the case, such things are also good for the rest of us as well.

...

Well done, good and faithful servant. Though you ache from weariness and feel hollowed out by the heavy weight of your "enemies," God loves you. God's hospitality is upon you! Whether you always realize it or not.

He is with you. He is for you. He longs to fill you, refresh you, and restore you. May you admit your daily and desperate dependance on Him. And know His perfect peace in Christ Jesus our Savior. May the Holy Spirit fill you up with every good thing, every fruit, every comfort, every mercy, until your own heart and mind, your spirit, overflow with praise.

No matter whoever or whatever is standing around the table prepared for you. They cannot touch you without His permission, and even then, not forever.

God is with you. Forever. No matter what.

Come and sit at His table! He has called you from out of the shadows in the woods and into the clearing! The table is here! Your God is near!