I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15: 13 (New Living Translation)
The Apostle Paul is telling us there are three ingredients to which we must connect in order that we may live in the overflow. They are hope, joy, and peace.
Hope is the confident expectation that whatever you put your faith in will produce fruit. The efforts you put forth in your marriage will deliver a restored relationship with your spouse. The hard work you invest in your children will generate an open and transparent bond with your kids. The time you spend to learn about what makes you tick; to assess and evaluate your strengths and weaknesses will ultimately result in you seeing a reflection of the characteristics of Christ in you.
Joy is not happy. Happy is connected to happenings. Happy is tied to a sea saw of events that may leave you either happy or sad. Joy is nothing like that. Joy is a state of mind. It is when my heart is filled with gladness because I know and believe God has me. In the middle of a pandemic, God has got me. In the middle of an illness, God has me. In the middle of a family tragedy, God has me.
Peace is inward stillness. God is in control! Peace is birthed from the trust I have in God to support, heal, protect, comfort, teach, forgive, guide, and love. God’s peace surpasses all our natural understanding. Peace is truly a gift.
Prayer: Here I am, Father. I want to be a vessel of honor. Please fill me afresh with the Holy Spirit. Fill me to overflowing to bless this thirsty world. Make me, shape me, mold me, fill me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
you & me
Once I decided to live my life in a place of overflow and blessings, it required I surrender my thirst for things and people that lacked substance and goodness. First things first, I needed to take an authentic look at my vessel. Where was my heart really feeling? What was my mind focused on? What was my soul genuinely connected to? At the time, I was all over the place. I was feeling unwanted because I wasn’t dating. My mind was focused on money and career. My soul was connected to what would generate success. I was looking to things and people to define my worth, value, and status. In other words, my vessel was stagnant, and it stunk – badly!
The truth is our walk with the Lord is never meant to be stagnant. You and I are encouraged by our faith to live life as a river – constantly flowing and producing. If you are stagnant – if you’re not a river – you are going to stink. I have! I had to get rid of the stagnant stuff in my life. I had to make room for things that actually mattered to my heart, mind, and soul. It meant carving out dedicated time at the top of the morning to meditate on scriptures which encourage my spirit. Daily, I think on those things that are good, sweet, kind, and gracious.
What is in your vessel? What is going on inside of you when people bump you? When the pressure of life jostle you, what spills out? Is it bitterness, anger, accusation, and a sense of entitlement? Or do you spill out love, joy, hope and grace?
I am grateful that I serve a God who fills me with His overflowing presence. I am grateful my vessel is overflowing with confident hope.
…now what, Linda
now what, Linda? 