Living Above the Daily Grind

I stood in my friend Beth's kitchen watching the stove, waiting for the coffee to boil. Her husband was demonstrating the wonder of a vacuum coffee maker that coffee aficionados hold in high esteem. He said it was popular years ago and brews an exquisite cup of coffee.

As we waited for the coffee pot to heat, he explained that two round globes {that looked like they belonged in a science lab} are connected, one filled with water, the other with coffee. 

Apparently the water boils in the bottom pot and through some sort of java magic, it's pulled into the upper globe and then smoothly slides back down to the lower globe. 

It has something to do with heat and vapors. {And after watching it, I'm still not convinced it wasn't magic.} It was quite the gizmo. 

I can’t properly explain how it works {being a girl who loves words not science experiments}, but all I know is the coffee tasted rich and decadent. 

It just might have been one of the best cups of coffee I’ve ever had.

I thought about how the effort and the wait were worth it for us to enjoy an extraordinary cup of coffee. 

And I think that’s how God works in our lives. Especially when the heat gets turned up and some of our days demand more of us than we think we can manage.

Difficult days get me thinking that my circumstances define me more than the truth of what God believes about me. Hard days make me wonder what God is doing in my life.

It's hard to trust that God is working on my behalf because it's easier to give up hope. 

It's hard to persevere and wait for God's plans to unfold because it's easier to look for the next distraction that grabs my attention. 

It's hard to appreciate who God created me to be because it's easier to indulge in self-absorption and compare myself to others.

It's hard to listen to what God is asking me to do because it's easier to ignore his whispers and inclinations.

But when I see circumstances in my life get stirred up, I wonder what God is brewing. 

I want the courage to do the very thing that he is asking me to put the effort into because long ago I heard him whisper, "Step out and take a risk with me."

I want the difficult days to build my faith because I don't have all the answers. 

I want to decide that whatever comes my way, I will trust him.

And the hard part is living like I believe his promises, despite my fears and doubts. The promises that God is not tired of me. He is thinking about me today. He will give me the courage I need.

And God isn’t done with my story yet.

These are the truths my heart needs to hear. Especially on the hard days.

Holley Gerth, best-selling author and co-founder of the website incourage offers 52 encouraging truths to hold on to in her new book, What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days.

Reading these short chapters based on the Psalms is like sitting down with her over a cup of coffee and listening to her encouraging words fill up my heart. 

I’d love to have coffee with Holley. 

Just as a trusted friend would, she reminds me of God’s promises on the days that discourage my spirits and make me want to give up on what God has whispered to my heart. 

These beautiful promises from God, along with Holley's inspired words, fill the pages.

~When I feel like my life is at a standstill, God is preparing me.

~When I feel like I’m all alone, God is someone I can rely on.

~When I feel like I don't have anything to offer, God can use me to help others.

~When I feel like I’m not enough, God says I’m a delight not a disappointment.

~When I wish things had turned out differently, God’s ways are best for me.

This book is like having a year’s worth of Holley’s blog posts at my fingertips to encourage and inspire me. 

I think What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days is the perfect complement for my morning coffee to lift my heart above the daily grind. 

Even if my morning cup of coffee is just a regular joe kind of coffee. 

I'm certainly no barista and there's nothing magical or scientific about it, but my coffee is chock-full of perks to help me espresso myself during the day. {Did I really just type that?} 

All I know is without coffee in the morning, I'm in for a brewed awakening.

I am part of Revell Reads blogger review tour for What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days and I received a complimentary copy of the book, but my opinions are 100% my own.

I'm linking up with my friends at Holley Gerth's place at Coffee for Your Heart. Click here for more encouragement!