I Felt Like A Broken Cup

After church one Sunday, 

I texted Pastor Steve, 

"it's like the reality of Jesus won't stick to me." 

That morning he talked about how we need to ask God to fill us up to overflow so that when people look at us, they see the reality of Jesus, who is just flowing out of our cup.  They get splashed, even! It was such a beautiful image. Instead of letting that encourage me, I started to feel like a broken cup. Why won't His water stay in there??

I prayed the whole rest of that day. Lord, why do I feel this way? Show me. And He did. 

I was aware that our cups needed to be filled up over and over because we are supposed to pour ourselves out. Our cups don't serve us; we use them to serve others.  

if you pour yourself out for the hungry

    and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,

then shall your light rise in the darkness

    and your gloom be as the noonday.

11 

And the Lord will guide you continually

    and satisfy your desire in scorched places

    and make your bones strong;

and you shall be like a watered garden,

    like a spring of water,

    whose waters do not fail.

Isaiah 58:10-11

I felt like I was always asking to be filled, not because I was pouring myself out, but because I couldn't even keep enough living water in my cup for my own self to survive.  But why, God?

I felt like I couldn't stay filled, but maybe my cup was just broken. You can't fill a broken cup. I started to pray, God fix my cup so that I can be filled up with You for the people.  

Do you know what happens when God doesn't answer your prayer? You realize that it's because He gives you much better than what you could ever think or imagine (see Ephesians 3:20). He gave me a brand new cup and reminded me that I'm one of "the people" too. I'm filled up with Him for myself!  And His people. 

The purpose of the cup is so that we keep going back to Him and the more we pour ourselves out, the more we are in communion with the water source.  

My Cup Runneth Over by Nancy Cupp