by Rev Douglas Brauner

God’s grace satisfies us to the very end.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
Psalm 34:8 New Living Translation

Maxwell House coffee has been in existence since 1892, and was named after the Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Their slogan, written on their coffee cans, reads, “Good to the Last Drop.” The power of advertising has burned that slogan into my brain. Even as a small child, I remember that slogan from television commercials…and I believed it until I became a coffee snob.

Today, Maxwell House coffee fits a category of other brands that I call “church coffee.” As you might expect, I drink a lot of church coffee. At 6:30, on Sunday mornings, I brew a pot of church coffee as I prepare for my prayer walk before worship. It might not taste the best, but it provides the “lift” I need.

I presently need a “lift” of a different kind in my life.

We all go through seasons where it seems as if those old bad habits, that we thought we had dealt with, come back to haunt us again. I’m going through such a season. I can’t tell you why I’m experiencing this battle, but I can say that the struggle is real. Maybe you’re dealing with something similar.

When we struggle with sins, that we thought we’d left in the past, it might feel like we’re disappointing God. How can he forgive me for something that I’m doing again? How can he have mercy on me for returning to something that breaks his heart? Yes, sin breaks God’s heart, but it doesn’t nullify the price Jesus paid on his cross.

God’s grace is good to the last drop.

So we fight the battle again. We turn to the mercy of God in Christ. We cling to his cross and we trust that the same mercy that flowed for us in the past still flows for us today.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado