Of Grinders and Gratefulness

In everything give thanks ...

I Thessalonians 5:18

I love my coffee.

I frequently tell my students "Coffee keeps me interesting ...". We travelled to the States this summer and, while shopping in a little store, I saw this sign:

I should have bought it!

When I turned 50, a couple who are good friends bought me a nice grinder so that I could grind my own coffee beans (bought at Costco) and use the ground coffee in my Keurig (which actually means "lovely" in Dutch!). Life is good. (... insert contented sigh here ...)

I'm sure you're wondering why I'm waxing eloquent over my caffeine addiction; the reason is this: When we lost our David and our whole world felt like it had been turned upside-down, those same friends were there immediately when we called. I will never forget the simple comfort I received when Chris walked in the door, hugged me with tears in his eyes and a catch in his throat and told me how sorry he was. And Beth was there for my hurting wife.  Then, as we traversed that long and weary week of preparation, and later the visitation and funeral, both they and their children stood by us, day by day, rarely knowing what to say but being there for whatever we needed. Often it was a text, or a call, to remind us they were praying for us. During the three and a half hours of the visitation, they stood by us for the entire night. As I greeted those that came to pass on their condolences, suddenly Beth would be at my elbow with a glass of cold water. We discovered they had been instrumental in coordinating the meals that were delivered to our house. Rarely in the limelight but always there just when we needed them.

Friends like that are rare. People that are so selfless, looking simply to meet the needs. We are extremely blessed to have them in our lives, and I never want to take them for granted.

And so I have taken a very mundane, run-of-the-mill task and turned it into an opportunity to be grateful. About every two weeks, I have to grind more beans to fill my little coffee can. And every time I pull that little grinder out of the cupboard and grind the coffee beans, I take time to thank God for our friends, who were God's hands and feet to bring His love to us when we were so very weak and weary.

I'd like to say the idea was mine; to attach a special significance to a plain and simple item. But the truth is, God did it long before I did. It's called communion, and it's brilliant. Jesus took a very mundane, run-of-the-mill item like a loaf of bread, which can be found in pretty much every culture. He broke it and said, "This represents My body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." Then He took a cup of wine, again something found easily in most cultures and He said, "This represents My blood which was shed for you. Do this, as often as you drink it, in memory of Me."

No hindrances. No matter how rich or poor, whether from lower class or upper class; everyone could partake. His institution certainly leveled the entry, so that any could participate. But what is oh-so-important is that He took something simple, something plain, and attached to it such great significance - the reminder which inspires thankfulness that comes from appreciating what has been done on our behalf, what we were incapable of doing for ourselves.

And so now I look for other simple, mundane, daily things to attach significance to, so that I can use them to remind my heart of the great love of God for me, of the depths to which He was willing to go to rescue me from my own sin, so that I am reminded, even inspired, to be once again grateful for what He has done for me. Maybe as I garden, I am reminded that He has weeded my heart of the unforgiveness or evil desires that were once there. Maybe it's as I wash the dishes that I am reminded of how He washed away every stain and made me clean before Him. And I recognize that none of it was deserved; it's all a gift of His grace.

And that fills me with a spirit of joy and gratefulness far more than coffee ever could!