In my "Encouragement for Today" Devotion, I wrote about how we girls can sometimes be found holding out a little heart shaped cup to our spouse, our kids, our friends, our possessions, or our jobs and ask, "Will you fill me?"
If you are visiting from the devotion... welcome. I'm glad you've popped over. The list of verses I promised can be found below. But first, I hope you'll read this:
We were created to experience the full love of God. When we try to get other people or other things to fill that which only God was made to fill, the remaining emptiness can make us girls desperate. I know. I've walked those roads.
And when people, possessions, and positions didn't fill me, I turned to food.
Ever been there?
I felt as if life was already denying me so much. For heaven’s sake, everything I wanted seemed out of reach but these cookies were right here. And I wanted them. And I knew they would taste good. And no one had the right to tell me I couldn't have them. So there.
I think many of us have been around this mountain a time or two or twenty seven. But I love what God instructs in Deuteronomy 2:3, “You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north."
Turn north it’s time to move on to something new. Turn north, it's time to stop trying to get everything else to fill you. Turn north and let the truth of my love seep into every deep recess of your soul. Only I can fill you, so turn north and see.
For me, this has to start with me admitting my feelings to the Lord and asking for his help. But I’ll be honest, often in times of struggle I’m over playing the plastic prayer game.
Rote prayers I’ve repeated thousands of times just won’t cut it when there’s Goldfish and Oreos calling to me from the pantry and my resolve has worn thin as a tissue. I’ve been known to pray as I’m stuffing myself full, “God, thank you for this food. Take it to the nourishment of my body and please change the molecular structure of these goldfish to be that of carrot sticks.”
Since I hardly think that’s a sign of heading north… I have to have another prayer strategy. And a few years ago, I found exactly what I needed- prayers where I don’t speak at all.
Romans 8:26, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”
In a huff one day I sat down to pray and had absolutely no words. None. I felt so empty.
I sat there staring blankly. I had no suggestions. I had no solutions. I had nothing but quiet tears and a little chocolate smeared on my top lip. Finally, God broke through to me when a thought rushed through my mind and caught me off guard, “I know you want me to change your circumstances, Lysa. But, right now I want to focus on changing you.”
I didn’t necessarily like what I heard during this first time of praying where I didn’t speak at all, but at least I felt I was connecting with God. I hadn’t felt that in a long time.
Since I wanted to keep that connection I started making it a habit to sit quietly before the Lord more often. I just trusted that the Holy Spirit would indeed lift up the exact right prayers for me like Romans 8:26 promised.
Sometimes I would cry. Sometimes I’d sit with a bad attitude. Sometimes I’d sit with a heart so heavy I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to carry on much longer. But as I sat, I sensed God was there. And I started to discern changes that I needed to make in response to my circumstances- responses that didn’t include using food for comfort. Responses that didn't demand fulfillment from anyone or anything but God.
If I was really going to head north and make lasting changes, I would have to empty myself of the lies that other things or people could ever make me feel full. Then I would have to fill up on God's truths.
The more I've filled myself up with the truths of God's love the less and less I find myself pulling out that little heart shaped cup.
That's why I wrote "Becoming More than a Good Bible Study Girl" to walk women through the process of learning how to have a fulfilling relationship with God. You can order your copy by clicking here. (But, wait... I have something I want to give you first!)
In the meantime, here's a list of some of my favorite verses reminding us just how filling God's love really is:
Ephesians 3:17- 19, "And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."
Romans 8:38-39, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Psalm 89:2
I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.
1 John 4:9
This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only son into the world that we might live through him.
Romans 5:5
And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
1 John 3:1
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Psalm 103:8
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
Psalm 103:17
But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him
1 John 2:5
But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him.
I pray this encourages you sweet friend. Happy (almost) weekend.
If you are visiting from the devotion... welcome. I'm glad you've popped over. The list of verses I promised can be found below. But first, I hope you'll read this:
We were created to experience the full love of God. When we try to get other people or other things to fill that which only God was made to fill, the remaining emptiness can make us girls desperate. I know. I've walked those roads.
And when people, possessions, and positions didn't fill me, I turned to food.
Ever been there?
I felt as if life was already denying me so much. For heaven’s sake, everything I wanted seemed out of reach but these cookies were right here. And I wanted them. And I knew they would taste good. And no one had the right to tell me I couldn't have them. So there.
I think many of us have been around this mountain a time or two or twenty seven. But I love what God instructs in Deuteronomy 2:3, “You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north."
Turn north it’s time to move on to something new. Turn north, it's time to stop trying to get everything else to fill you. Turn north and let the truth of my love seep into every deep recess of your soul. Only I can fill you, so turn north and see.
For me, this has to start with me admitting my feelings to the Lord and asking for his help. But I’ll be honest, often in times of struggle I’m over playing the plastic prayer game.
Rote prayers I’ve repeated thousands of times just won’t cut it when there’s Goldfish and Oreos calling to me from the pantry and my resolve has worn thin as a tissue. I’ve been known to pray as I’m stuffing myself full, “God, thank you for this food. Take it to the nourishment of my body and please change the molecular structure of these goldfish to be that of carrot sticks.”
Since I hardly think that’s a sign of heading north… I have to have another prayer strategy. And a few years ago, I found exactly what I needed- prayers where I don’t speak at all.
Romans 8:26, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”
In a huff one day I sat down to pray and had absolutely no words. None. I felt so empty.
I sat there staring blankly. I had no suggestions. I had no solutions. I had nothing but quiet tears and a little chocolate smeared on my top lip. Finally, God broke through to me when a thought rushed through my mind and caught me off guard, “I know you want me to change your circumstances, Lysa. But, right now I want to focus on changing you.”
I didn’t necessarily like what I heard during this first time of praying where I didn’t speak at all, but at least I felt I was connecting with God. I hadn’t felt that in a long time.
Since I wanted to keep that connection I started making it a habit to sit quietly before the Lord more often. I just trusted that the Holy Spirit would indeed lift up the exact right prayers for me like Romans 8:26 promised.
Sometimes I would cry. Sometimes I’d sit with a bad attitude. Sometimes I’d sit with a heart so heavy I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to carry on much longer. But as I sat, I sensed God was there. And I started to discern changes that I needed to make in response to my circumstances- responses that didn’t include using food for comfort. Responses that didn't demand fulfillment from anyone or anything but God.
If I was really going to head north and make lasting changes, I would have to empty myself of the lies that other things or people could ever make me feel full. Then I would have to fill up on God's truths.
The more I've filled myself up with the truths of God's love the less and less I find myself pulling out that little heart shaped cup.
That's why I wrote "Becoming More than a Good Bible Study Girl" to walk women through the process of learning how to have a fulfilling relationship with God. You can order your copy by clicking here. (But, wait... I have something I want to give you first!)
In the meantime, here's a list of some of my favorite verses reminding us just how filling God's love really is:
Ephesians 3:17- 19, "And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."
Romans 8:38-39, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Psalm 89:2
I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.
1 John 4:9
This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only son into the world that we might live through him.
Romans 5:5
And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
1 John 3:1
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Psalm 103:8
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
Psalm 103:17
But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him
1 John 2:5
But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him.
I pray this encourages you sweet friend. Happy (almost) weekend.
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