Coffee Drinking in Church?
Thursday’s Verses:
From Psalm 146:1-2 ESV
“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.”
Admittedly, the photo above is a little odd (It was created by Google’s Gemini AI). While the others are sitting in church, heads forward, a man is nursing a coffee while scrolling on his phone. He gets points for being in church. But he’s only half present. Participating to a point, but not quite joining in.
You can go to church. You can hear the hymns. You might even know the lyrics and still feel wholly disconnected. Your physical self is in attendance, but your heart is elsewhere. Preoccupied with pending sports games later on, regrets over what you said to a loved one, or thoughts that you didn’t sleep enough the night before. Worshiping by “being there” while mindlessly scrolling through your phone.
Psalm 146 leaves no room for detachment. “Praise the Lord, O my soul.” Notice where that object of praise is directed. The psalmist isn’t calling out to the congregation. He’s commanding his own heart. Wake up. Join the song.
Lutherans have learned a great deal about praise. Namely, that praise isn’t something we conjure up when we’re feeling spiritual enough to. Praise flows from who God has been shown to be. The God who breathed you into existence. The God who makes breath come into our lungs each morning. The triune God who in Christ secured our salvation is worthy of praise, whether we feel like joining in or not.
We understand something important here: praise isn’t something we manufacture from the right mood or energy. It flows from what God has already done. The same God who gives breath, who sustains life, who in Christ has secured salvation—that God is worthy of praise whether we feel fully engaged or not.
And yet, the psalm invites more than outward participation. “I will praise the Lord as long as I live.” That’s a whole-life response. Not just Sunday morning. Not just when it’s easy. It’s a steady turning of the heart toward God, again and again.
So maybe the question isn’t whether you’ve ever been like that man in the back. You have. We all have.
The question is what happens next.
✝️ A Prayer for Today:
Lord Jesus, You know my heart more than I know it myself. There are days I go through half-listening. Call me back to yourself. Teach my wandering heart to praise you. Teach me to praise you with my life and not just my lips. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
The image above was created by Google’s Gemini AI.