An Extra Serving

February 1, 2023

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.” Psalm 23:5

So, you’re sitting in one of those really nice restaurants. You love the food there, so you eat there often. The one thing you don’t like is the coffee.

No, the coffee tastes great. That’s not the problem. The problem is that, unlike most restaurants, any time you get a refill you get charged for another cup of coffee.

As you sit there, you notice a couple at a nearby table asking the waitress for more coffee. I wonder if they know? She winks at them and gives them a ‘thumbs up’ sign. She soon returns with a pot of coffee and refills their cups.

Wait! She’s giving them too much! It’s going over the top of the cup and slopping coffee into the saucer! The waitress smiles and walks away as if nothing went wrong. You can’t understand why the customers are not upset. Instead, they’re laughing and smiling like little children with a new toy.

As the couple continues their meal, you later see them pick up their coffee cups and pour the contents of the saucers into the cups. It’s like bonus coffee to them.

That, my friends, is an illustration of Psalm 23:5. God not only gives us what we need, but God also has the wonderful tendency to bless us in ways we had not expected. He overflows our cups.

I catch myself complaining sometimes that I have too many responsibilities, too many possessions to care for, too many friends to share my time and energy with. Isn’t that ridiculous? God blesses me too much? Instead of complaining, I should be praising!

“I have come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly.” John 10:10