From the Edges – Dunking Donuts -Morning Devotional

From the Edges – Morning Devotions
Pastor Calvin Cook – May 17, 2024
Dunking Donuts
1 Peter 2:1-2 (ESV) So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

This morning is different. I am doing a different thing. My day is a bit altered because I slept in. My prep time for the day is different and took longer. Every morning, I usually drink this concoction (as Gail calls it) of Vinegar, Ginger, Honey and sometimes Lemon. I drink this every morning, at first it tasted awful, but I have become used to the taste. This morning, I had a taste for a good strong cup of coffee, which was always my first go-to drink in the morning.

While I was making my coffee this morning the way I like it, strong, hot and black, my mind was wondering. I thought about how at one time coffee and caffeine controlled my mornings. I haven’t quit drinking coffee but now I don’t have to have it. It has been replaced by something else, hopefully something better for me in the concoction I drink every morning. (Maybe we can talk about this more later.)

While the coffee was dripping, I noticed some donut holes and brownie bites that I picked up the other day. They have grown a bit stale and hard, but couldn’t hardly just feed them to the chickens, so I gathered them up and did what I had seen my Dad do many times, dunked them in my coffee and they became easy to eat. My Dad was a dipper and dunker, I am not, only out of necessity. I watched him many times dip whatever into his morning coffee. Actually, at times it grossed me out, but this morning I found myself dipping and dunking and listened as the Holy Spirit was teaching me a lesson.

You see I believe that this is how many times we are approaching our faith journey. We are taking what is given to us or what is available, we are waiting for something but don’t want to search it out for ourselves and instead we grab hold of what is available. We listen to the advice and directions of others and think it to be what we need when there is so much more. Sometimes we take these things, these stale even moldy things of the world and try to flavor them with something else with reason or even glamour only to be disappointed.

This becomes one of the purposes of the Holy Spirit. Because the Holy Spirit from the very beginning of time has been an advocate, a comforter and counselor. We need, we need, we need to allow the Holy Spirit to flavor the teachings of scripture, the directions of Jesus, with meaning, purpose, and direction for our life today. However, to do this we need to taste of the goodness of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to guide us away from deceitfulness, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander into a much better way of life.

1 Peter 2:2 guides us to remember that we are not grown yet or complete. We are like babies craving more but satisfied with just the little bit we have. We should be desiring more. We should be striving every minute of every day to draw closer through our professed relationship with Jesus and leaving the mind of the world for the completeness of God. This is what the Holy Spirit will do, be our guide along the pathway of life. But…. You must accept all that Holy Spirit is directing you to and strive to be made complete.

Today with all my heart I am praying for the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit.