Pastor's Devotions by Tim Harris

For my birthday that recently passed, my nephew Matthew bought me a French press coffee maker. Last weekend I got to use it for the first time and found that it was a totally different and awesome coffee-making experience. I’ve perked coffee (which I find a bit too weak) and I’ve dripped coffee (which is how I usually make my coffee). I have also made cappuccinos and espressos with an espresso maker. But I had never used a French press.   And, let me say, the coffee came out muy rico —i.e. delicious!   (Of course, it might have been the beans from Hawaii that helped!) As you might guess, the main event in making coffee with a French press is, the pressing.   After the hot water is poured over the ground coffee beans, which then sit for about four minutes, the “press” is pushed down through the water and coffee mixture such that the ground beans are pushed to the bottom and their flavor forced into the water. And…oi la! You now have your pot of coffee...

Earlier this summer, Kim and I noticed that our neighbors had seven puppies in their backyard behind their chain-link fence. There were two Rhodesian ridgebacks and five beagles. Apparently, our neighbors were taking care of them for a friend. (It must have been a very good friend!).   It was so much fun to see the seven of them playing as they jumped on each other and chased each other around the yard.   As people walked by, the puppies would come to the fence looking for a little attention. Then they would quickly be off and running, back to their playtime. As the summer went on, the puppies were adopted (most likely sold) to various individuals and families.   First the Rhodesian ridgebacks went (they were a few weeks older). Then one by one the beagles left until there were just two beagles left. The two of them continued to play and chase each other around the yard. They really were so cute together. It seemed that they were inseparable. But then on...

Last week concluded this year’s US Open tennis tournament in Flushing Queens. As we do most years, my brothers, Chris and John, and I attended during the first week—actually on opening day. It’s always a great opportunity to see so many different players from around the world, some that are well known and some that might be new on the scene. And, what’s always most interesting in a tournament like this are the number of upsets that take place—i.e. when a lower ranked player (an underdog who at times is completely unknown) defeats a higher ranked player.   And, such was the case many times over in this year’s tournament.   One such case in point was in the women’s final when the 19-year-old Canadian, Bianca Andreescu defeated the veteran Serena Williams. It was a terrible loss for Serena and an incredible win for Bianca, who only came on the scene in any major way this past year.   Bianca the underdog beat the favorite in two straight sets, and at the en...