Running on Empty?

Running on Empty?

Running on Empty? Find out how to get refueled!

How are you doing? Are you living in the fullness of God? Or are you running on empty? We all need refueling. Constantly. We make a big mistake if we think that once we’ve embraced Christ we’d always be spiritually full no matter what we do or leave undone. We all know from our own experience that it’s not true.

The first sign that I have gone too long without refueling is getting cranky or impatient. Then my hubby kindly suggests some praying for me. And that’s exactly what gets me refueled. Praying and reading scripture. And -by the grace of God- I am up and running again.

Why do we keep forgetting? Sometimes we take God for granted. But sometimes we forget even when we KNOW it’s the only way to go. Because life is life. Because the enemy is fierce. The most important thing to know is that God is always ready to refuel us.

The more we practice the refueling process, the less likely we are to take God for granted or run on empty. God will certainly pour out his blessings if we trust him. The Holy Spirit will keep filling us if we bring our empty tanks to be filled.

Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. (Eph. 4:30, MSG)

Charles Inward has stated “There’s no such thing as a once-for-all fullness. It’s a continuous appropriation of a continuous supply from Jesus Christ. It’s a moment by moment cleansing  and a moment by moment filling. As I trust Him, He fills me. So long as I go on trusting Him, He goes on filling me. The moment I begin to believe, that moment I begin to receive. As long as I keep on believing, praise the Lord, I keep on receiving.”

My twitter friend Dave commented the quote this way: “Indeed! When Paul says in Ephesians 5v18 “Be filled with the Spirit” it is with a continuous ongoing tense and not a once-for-all experience :)”

Even Jesus needed prayer. How much more do we? We need to position ourselves into receiving. God will take care of the rest. If we keep away from God, we can’t live in the fullness of God that is intended to all of us. It’s not automatic, but it is possible.

We need to turn to God every single day of our lives. We are dependent on God. The only way to have our spiritual tank filled is to abide in Christ. We can’t fill our tank once-for-all. We can’t be filled for life. Not even for a week. Manna, bread from heaven, went bad if it was tried to stored up. Our spiritual fuel starts evaporating the same way.

I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. (Eph. 3:15, MSG)

Jesus told a story of ten young virgins who went to greet the bridegroom (Matt. 25: 1-13). The five silly ones took lamps but no extra oil. The wise ones took jars of oil to feed their lamps. And when the bridegroom arrived, the silly ones did not have their lamps ready. Jesus tells us to stay alert and ready. Difficult to do if we are running on empty.

 

Gracious God,
We come to you.
Fill us up!
Show us what it means
to live in your fullness.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: How do you get refueled?

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you make regular stops to be filled with the Spirit!

Photo courtesy of Jonathan Fox

2 thoughts on “Running on Empty?

  1. I most certainly need to be “refueled” on a daily basis 🙂 It was brought to my attention recently, by the Holy Spirit, that I was not exercising my “faith” enough. And God’s Word says, “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Inevitably when we hear and heed the Word, we are automatically “filled” again and again —as you said, an on-going filling! Thank you for your post 🙂

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