I love objects from the past and wonder what snapshots of Life they were a part of. Particularly, my eye is drawn toward the teacups. At some point in history, someone sat down with that teacup and had a lively conversation with someone else… or sat quietly pondering life’s many questions. I wonder what story each teacup could tell – A story to tell of the plans the artist had while creating it; a story to tell of the occasions it had been used for; a story for each ding, crack, or chip it may have acquired; a story recounting the various types of tea and preparations it had tasted.
Just like these teacups, you have a story to tell. You were created with the hands of the Master Creator with exactly the design He wanted. Isaiah 64:8 says God is the Potter, you are the clay and you are the work of His hands. Psalm 139:13, 14 says you were knit together and wonderfully made. Some of us are delicate and refined, some of us are sturdy and simple. All are made in the image of our Creator (Gen. 1:27).
Dings, Cracks and Chips
Your story also includes how you got a specific ding, crack, or chip. And we, the body of Christ, need to hear those stories in order to offer comfort to you or to receive the comfort ourselves that the Lord has given you (II Cor. 1:3-4). Those events have added to our character as we would say they added to the character of a teacup.
Many teacups sit on glass shelves in display cases or even boxed away for a special occasion. Some may even be hidden away because of the chip, crack, or ding. However, isn’t it more useful and beneficial when a teacup is utilized?
So it is for us. We may just sit in church or in our homes, getting involved only when there is a special occasion. Or maybe we are embarrassed to leave our comfort zone, because we don’t feel ready or equipped to be utilized. But God calls us to serve, to be fulfilled pursuing the purpose we were created for.
What’s Inside
There’s a saying attributed to Thich Nhat Hanh, “Whatever is inside the cup, is what will spill out”. When you get jostled in life, what is inside your heart is revealed by spilling out. What are you filled with? Arsenic or chamomile, cyanide or lavender, strychnine or peppermint? James 3:8-11 tells us a spring cannot pour out both salt and freshwater. From our mouths come blessing of the Lord and cursing of those who are made in His image. We should not be filled with both poison and elixir.
Romans 1:29-31 gives a list of poisons that we may be filled with and thus cause pain and death to those around us including ourselves. Some in that list are: covetousness, malice, envy, strife, deceit, maliciousness, gossip, slander, insolence, haughtiness, boasting, foolishness, faithlessness.
Be Filled
What does God want us to be filled with? Romans 15:13-14 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another.” So we are to be filled with joy, peace, hope, goodness, and knowledge.
Ephesians 5:18 says to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And we know the fruit of the Spirit to be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. And we fill up with the Spirit and be filled by His fruit by spending time with Him in prayer, study, meditating on His Word, listening to His promptings.
Overflowing Cups
The teacup’s deepest fulfillment comes when it is poured out to nourish the drinker. Isaiah 58:10-11 says we are to pour ourselves out for the hungry and afflicted and when we do this we will be like a spring of water that never fails. Psalm 23:5 tells us that the Lord grants our cup to overflow! II Corinthians tells of a group of Christians who in “their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity.” Our cup overflows that we may bless, take care of, encourage, enrich others!
Tell your story. Tell of the Great Artisan who fashioned and formed you for HIs Glory and your good. Tell of all the days God has granted you and the redeeming work He has done and is doing in those days.
Be filled. Be filled as often as possible, spending more and more time with the Living Water Who will never run dry.
Pour yourself out. Make it a beautiful offering of service to your Artisan Maker to fulfill your purpose in nourishing others.
