50 beans | check yourself.

Yep, I'm almost certain this comes as no big shock to anybody who reads this blog (I might as well have told you the earth is round). Let me clarify a bit. I drink coffee for a combination of reasons: for the sights and smells, for the warmth as you hold a cup in your hands, the aroma that brings a smile to your face, and yes, definitely for the caffeine kick. However, most importantly, I enjoy coffee. I enjoy coffee for the taste, the smell, the sensation of the slightly thicker consistency that it has, and yes, the alertness it brings.

Sadly, my motives for drinking coffee is not always out of pure enjoyment. I use coffee. I use it for my own personal gain. As a person who sleeps on average 5-6 hours a night, I use it for the kick it provides, regardless of the flavor, guzzling it at times just for the caffeine high. Oh don’t look at me like that. We’ve all been there. I know at one point or another you’ve done what I’ve often done: make a quick run to the local coffee shop, or worse, the local gas station for a quick caffeine jolt.

Recently I’ve been challenged to reconsider my reasons for drinking coffee, a caffeinated motive check of sorts. What are my reasons for consuming cup after cup of this stuff? Am I really doing it for the enjoyment factor? Or is this just another way of making up for lack of sleep? I was certain I started off with good motives. After all I’ve loved the sights and smells of coffee since I was a kid (and I still do), but when I reach for that next cup of coffee, why am I doing it?

On another coffee blog that I follow, the writer has embarked on a coffee fast, which is something that I’ve tried before; however, this is a partial fast, which I’ve never really done, or heard of. He stresses that he enjoys coffee, but uses it like a drug, taking a hit whenever he needed it. When I read that I felt convicted - I was doing that too! Especially when I have so much going on in life right now, it’s so easy to just rely on it as my sole crutch to get me through the day.

I recall Paul’s exhortation in 1 Corinthians 10:23 – Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive. I believe this applies to my coffee experience. There is certainly nothing wrong with consuming coffee, but to let it become a crutch means that I am certainly not consuming it for God’s glory, which is a path I shouldn’t let my coffee journey take me down. As Paul also says to the Corinthians: So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) This, I’ve come to realize, is something I must keep in mind as I explore my coffee hobby. I should enjoy it, but not let myself become dependent on it. I can still extoll the virtues of coffee, but not let coffee become a crutch. Hopefully I can keep this challenge in my mind as I continue my coffee journey.