Praying my way through a cup of tea

One might call me a tea addict. I feel about tea the way that many people feel about coffee, especially if I’m making it for myself.

There are a few things I find that can’t be helped by a cup of tea, which is probably why, on an average day, I’ll have about six cups of tea—depending on how cold the office is.

Since it is such a routine part of my day, I have been trying to use it as a touch point throughout the day. I am slowly turning the routine of making tea into a touch point with God. I find that if I connect these touchpoints to already existing routines, they become more sustainable in seeking for these touchpoints to be more sustainable. It ends up turning a simple everyday act into an opportunity for worship and connection. It’s an opportunity to bring that moment I spend doing the thing into his presence and peace. Hence, I pray way my way through a cup of tea.

Touch Point: An opportunity to reset, reconnect and recentre ourselves with God. A moment in the day that we take to fix our eyes on Jesus

Finding an existing routine to turn into a touch point takes a bit of awareness, a little bit of thought, and lots of grace for it to be slow.

First, look through some of your regular routines on a day when there is some sort of stillness. These might be times when we pick up our phone to stop from getting bored or when we need to wait for something. It might be brushing your teeth, waiting for the bus, folding the laundry, or, like me, making a cup of tea.

Then, use the moment of doing the routine to focus your attention on God. There are all sorts of ways to do this, like breathing prayer, focusing on one of his attributes, or using it as a chance to practice silence.

I’m going to take you through how I try to do this with making a cup of tea. Each step is a different point where I can fix my eyes and dwell in His presence. However, I may only focus on one for the making of the tea.

How to make a good cuppa (by a purist)

1. Boil the Kettle

   • Fill it up, click the switch, and wait.

   • What happens: To heat the water, you put energy into it to increase its temperature. Water and heat are the key components here.

   • In this moment I tend to use it to remind myself of Jesus as our living water, form whom all life and blessing flows. I also sometimes use it to focus on the heat - spirit and fire.

   • I might ask for his refreshing or relighting at this moment to set a fire in me or someone/something I’m praying for. Sometimes, I just dwell on that thought, thinking about the river of life or the fire of the spirit.

2. Measure leaves into the strainer (or put the tea bag into a cup)

   • Preparing the leaves for the water

   • At this point, the leaves are dried out, dark, and curled in on themselves. They’re not worth consuming on their own; they are dried out when separated from the living water.

   • This moment is a moment of confession/penance. I reflect, recognising where I may have dried out, gone inwards, or become dark about something, and give those areas back to Christ.

3. Pour the water over

   • See immediate change in the leaves; often, they float.

   • Initially, the leaves float, seemingly potentially resistant to God’s presence. Still, it doesn’t take long for them to drop into the water, releasing themselves into the process.

   • At this moment, I recognise where I may have been resistant to God and let myself be aware of his presence. I release the tension I may have been holding, spaces that might have come to mind.

4. Steep

   • For most teas, you want to let them steep for 3-5 minutes. The leaves unfurl, and the water coaxes them open.

   • This is when the tea becomes what it is meant to be. As the tea leaves are dissolved in water, the tea becomes.

   • During this time, I sit and let myself be in God’s presence, steeping myself in the spirit as the tea steeps. I let myself focus on his presence, and as I do so, I relax my shoulders and body.

5. Remove leaves

   • After the tea leaves have steeped, we need to remove them so we can enjoy the result. If the tea overbrews, it becomes bitter.

   • I use this as a pointer to what I need to remove. I ask God for his will and way to be done; I lay my worries and wants at his feet. As I put the tea leaves in the compost/rubbish, I dump the things that I am carrying that are not for me to carry.

6. Transport

   • Now, I transport the tea, taking it to where I will be drinking it—often, I am not drinking it in the kitchen where I made it. This might be my desk, the couch, a meeting, my bed, or really anywhere I might have tea.

   • This is a reminder to ask God to be with me where I am going. It is a reminder that he is always with me and that I can ask him to help me be more aware of his presence in each moment.

7. Enjoy, Sip, Rest

   • We have reached the point of tea, which is for consumption and enjoyment. Then I drink the tea, slowly or quickly. Sometimes, I drink tea slowly to enjoy it; other times, it is what I need to get through the next few stressful moments.

   • I then, as and when I remember, sip the cup of tea to recentre myself. I take a moment to breathe and enjoy. It is a chance to focus on the present moment and invite God into it.

Tea is to be enjoyed, so enjoy it. It’s not about putting pressure on yourself to achieve each task but instead enjoying each step. It isn’t about completing these prayers as a set of rules or regiments but instead finding a way to find God in the small moments each day—a way to make sure I keep reconnecting with him, finding him as my rest point.