Philippians: 111 Full

“Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:11

I’ve been an empty pitcher,

All drained and dusty too,

For trying to get fuller,

Has only cracked me too.

A cracked and broken vessel—

What good thing can it do?

But God has something special,

In mind for me and you.

God made us to have fulness,

Up to the very brim.

He wants to right our chaos,

And fill us up with Him.

But He can’t pour His treasure

Where something else resides.

For vain and empty pleasure

Will fill, and crack the sides.

Then idol after idol,

Surrender them to Christ.

And this, alone is possible,

Through what He sacrificed.

And as we yield those prizes,

He’ll mend our shattered cup,

And give us sweet surprises,

For He will fill us up.

Stream bed

The cooler temperatures of morning awaken my senses. I drink it in. The sky is exquisite. Light and dark, blending, shading, fading. The clouds are what really get me. So beautiful, but so soon never to be again.

Heaven's tapestry of blue and gold will fade. Soon the sky is the hue of day. Soon the clouds disappear.

Then it hits.

It's a gift about to be opened- poured out upon the earth. It's highest purpose is to bless the ones who thirst. From cloud to stream to lake and ocean, ever giving, ever given. Though the substance that quenches thirst, it changes the dry, thirsty places into streams of living water. Living because it's giving.

"No one can live the law of God without ministering to others." - DA 584. But we can only give another what Heaven gave us. We are merely the stream bed. He is the Water. He is the Giver.

Take it. Give it. Drink it. Live it.

Thank You Lord for pouring out Yourself upon the dryness of the earth. For making fountains where before was thirsting desert. For giving, and giving, and giving.

Thank You.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

An ever flowing fountain;
A well that's never dry;
Like rain upon a mountain,
Whose stream will never die;
The love of God is ceaseless,
It's end cannot be found.
It's Source has more than excess,
To quench the thirsty ground.

As palm trees shading Elim,
And rushes in its sand,
Our life may draw a pilgrim,
To Water near at hand.
For when a thirsting trav'ler
Sees life in desert waste,
It beckons to that wond'rer,
"Don't leave this place in haste."

For still the quenching river
Flows from the smitten Stone,
Salvation to deliver,
In depths of love unknown.
And those who taste it's value,
Not only will receive,
But take to give its virtue,
Another to relieve.

A Blessing Secured

      “The Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him, to shew unto His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.” Revelation 1:1-2

      It’s like a waterfall. It plunges down on the rocks, smoothing, shaping, fashioning. But that water is not meant to stay there. It is only as the water is passed from rock to rock on it’s speedy descent to the valley floor that granite can continue to be molded. 

      Pure, clean, beautiful, life-giving, renewing water can stagnate. Turning rocks that have been changing shape into slimy, disgusting stones. Withholding our cup, however full, from another will only insure our future thirst. 

      God gave, so His angel could give, so John could pass it on. 

      “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you…” 1 John 1:1-3

      Give and it shall be given unto you. Light is not sent to be consumed, but reflected, ultimately back to God in glorification of Him. We who have been so blessed, so privileged, so cared for, we have responsibility. That responsibility is to give our gifts away. 

      A blessing shared is a blessing secured. Give.