Be Filled With the Good Things of God

 

One of my favorite Far Side comics is the one about how nature abhors a vacuum. This concept dates all the way back to Aristotle. Simply stated, empty spaces don’t occur in nature because denser spaces will expand to fill whatever void is created.

 

This concept applies to our personal and spiritual lives as well. If we aren’t doing anything productive, we can be filled with discouragement and attracted to unhealthy activities. If we are feeling emotionally empty, we can be filled with bitterness and regret. If we are feeling spiritually empty and dry, we can be filled with doubt and unworthiness.

 

As we begin this new year, it’s a good time to stop and ask ourselves if we are feeling empty in one area or another. We may find that we’ve already filled those voids with negative thoughts and actions. If so, we can resolve to sweep out all the junk that is weighing on us and start over, filling ourselves with the things of God. We can ask the Spirit to guide us into what He wants us to do and then take the first steps. We can use our free time to volunteer, showing our love to others and receiving love in return. We can fill our minds with God’s word as we study it diligently. We can be open to the love and fire of the Spirit in our prayer time and in worship with other believers.

 

Sometimes it takes awhile for our emptiness to be filled. Many of us have “gone through the desert” at one point in our life. We have to trust that our loving God will see us through. Only He can truly fill the emptiness within because He made us and our soul longs for Him. King David knew this. He exclaimed, “O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1).

 

Psalm 107 was written in thanksgiving to God for the Israelites return from exile in Babylon. They were advised to “…..give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things” (Psalm 107:8-9). May we also express our hunger and thirst to God today and ask Him to fill us with good things.

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The individual posts in this blog have been collected into a book, Reflections From the Basic Truths Blog.  It is available for free as an ebook through Barnes and Noble, https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reflections-from-the-basic-truths-blog-james-yarmchuk/1147055811?ean=2940181202702, Apple Books, and multiple other book websites. It is available for a minimal charge on Amazon and can also be purchased as a paperback through them.