WHAT ARE YOU FULL OF?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;
teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
(Colossians 3:16)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever seen a container (like a cup) from a distance and
were curious about what is in it? Could it be filled with coffee or
some other liquid?

You may see it in someone’s hand as they are walking about, and
suddenly another person bumps into them and causes the contents
of the cup to spill over. When that happens, you discover what was
inside the cup. The scriptures tell us about the provisions from God
that are in our ‘cup’.
    “…..my cup overflows.”
    (Psalm 23:5b)

Do you have days when you feel so good that you just can’t wait for
an opportunity to brighten someone else’s day? On the other extreme,
do you have days when you are very discouraged, and you know you
would bring down those around you? The truth is you need someone
to brighten your day.

Have you ever eaten so much that it made you miserable? You felt that
one more bite would make you pop, even though you have loosened your
clothes as much as possible. You are struggling to get relief from your
over-indulgence.

Whenever we have a little of something, spillage is not a problem, but
whenever we are ‘full to the brim’ with anything, an overflow should
be expected.

What fills your cup each day and what spills out whenever you are
bumped? When others do or say things that upset you, what do they
see spilling out of you? Would they see some latent anger or hostility?
Would they see a kind and considerate attitude? Would they see you
react in a way they would expect of a Christian, or would they see
something quite to the contrary?

Christians should be so full of the Lord that it spills out for all others
to see, regardless of the circumstances. Unfortunately, there are some
who allow the things of this world to keep a lid on their cup. A ‘worldly
lid’ hides our Christian attributes from others because we have a strong
desire to ‘fit in’. As a result, others fail to see the Christian characteristics
of someone who has a relationship with our almighty Heavenly Father.

The scriptures give us the key to creating an overflow of the Lord in our life.
    “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly….”
When we allow His Word to thrive in our life, it stimulates us to achieve
wisdom, break out in song, and develop grace in our hearts. It creates a
kind of “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” attitude in us that others can easily see.
It creates a heart of grace in us.

“Grace” means unmerited favor.
It means doing something for someone else without expecting anything
in return. It means putting the desires of others ahead of our own. It
means sincerely caring about others and doing things to encourage
them. It means trading in selfishness for selflessness.

Again, the key is to allow ‘the Word of Christ dwell in you richly’.
How do we do that? By reading the Bible – if we don’t read His
Word, then how can we expect it to dwell in us? We also need to
have a time of worship on a regular basis; we need those called
by God to teach us how to better understand His Word.

The scriptures also include, “…in all wisdom”. That means we
should have an ‘active filter’ involved in the things we say and
do. Instead of allowing our emotions to control what we do, we
choose instead to think of how we would feel if we were the
recipient of our actions. This can result in a better ‘spillage’
of what is in our Christian cup.

ACTION:
What is spilling out of you on a regular basis? Is it bitterness, anger,
envy, gossip, strife, greed, arrogance, or other kinds attitudes that
are displayed by people of the ‘world’? Or, do things like honesty,
fairness, virtue, joy, happiness, selflessness, etc. spill out when your
cup is bumped? What has filled you to the point of overflowing?

If you are not quite full of the Lord, then think about the great things
He has done for you. Not only did His sacrifice on the cross prove His
love for you, but He also blesses us in many other ways as we live out
our lives on earth with anticipation of His return.

What fills our mind overflows into our heart; what fills our heart
overflows for others to see. It all begins with our mind, doesn’t it?
This is why we are told that, in order for ‘the Word of Christ to dwell
in us richly (fully)’, we need to have Godly wisdom.

How do we gain Godly wisdom? We ask for it through prayer. When God
saves us, He gives us the Holy Spirit to help us in being transformed from
who we are, into who God wants us to be. The Spirit also guides us in our
desire to attain Godly wisdom. There is a strong connection between the
Spirit and wisdom. Look at what Paul said to the Ephesians.
    “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
      the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom
      and revelation, so that you may know Him better.”
      (Ephesians 1:17)

Look at the two byproducts of Godly wisdom:
    ‘revelation’
        – We develop an ability to look at things differently.
    ‘know Him better’
        – When we look at things differently, we get a better understanding
           of God’s perspective, which results in our knowing Him better.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I want to have a positive impact on others
that will point them to You. My spiritual cup is low and is not
overflowing as it should. I ask you for Godly wisdom that will
guide me in filling my mind with the things that please You. I
pray that my heart will be so saturated with the love You have
given me, that it will overflow so others can easily see the joy
and happiness I have in knowing You. You bless me in so many
ways and I pray that others will see the sincerity of my faith by
the things I say and do. I pray that it will be a natural overflow
of my mind and heart. Thank You for how You overflow into me,
so that Your grace can overflow through me into the lives of others.”

BLOG: utvolwoody.com