An Empty Vessel

My young daughter sat quietly at the table eating her snack. Beside her was her plastic cup, Dora the Explorer smiling on the outside, and apple juice poured within. Suddenly her little brother appeared at her side and stuck one of his sticky fingers in her cup. She squealed with disgust. Before she knew it, he was dropping cheerios in her drink and then a few small toys he had clutched in his chubby hand. She began to cry. “Mama, look what he did to my drink!” I took her cup and got ready to pour it out to give her new juice. She began to cry again, “But Mama, that’s my juice! I want it!” I gently tried to explain to her that now her cup, while very full, wasn’t filled with juice that she should drink. In fact, we needed to empty the cup so that she could have fresh juice; juice that would not only taste good but would be good for her as well. “No, just put more in it!” she cried. At 3 years old she understood that her brother had soiled her drink but at the same time it was still her drink. She just couldn’t understand that sometimes we have to empty our cup so that it can be filled again with something that is better for us.

As adults we often have this same problem. We hold onto things that perhaps aren’t good for us. Like my young daughter, we focus, with childlike stubbornness, on the fact that it is “ours” and not on the fact that it might be time to be rid of what we grasp onto so tightly. We hold onto past hurts, problems, struggles, upsets, and regrets. We think that we must hold on to them so that we don’t forget the lesson we learned or make the same mistakes again. We might even hold onto them because we feel they make us who we are inside. Indeed, our cup is full, but not full of what is healthy, what is good, or what we truly need.

We may find our cups are full for other reasons as well. We live in a society where we are taught that to be happy we must have “things”. Our lives are filled with appointments and activities. We are encouraged to buy gadgets and gizmos, toys and thingamajigs… anything to entertain us and keep us busy. We fill our spare moments with social media and television. While we “tune in” we actually are “tuning out”. We are encouraged to put ourselves first and to make sure our cups are overflowing. Unfortunately what we will find if we fill our own cups with the things that we think we need, the things society tells us we need, then we leave no room for God to add to our cup with what He knows we need.

A cup that is already full leaves no room to be filled again. When we keep the things that are holding us back in our relationship with God we leave no room for God to enter into our lives. We have to empty it of our past mistakes, regrets, hurts, and worries before we have room for God to fill us up again. When we fill our lives with what society tells us is important and will make us fulfilled we actually experience a false sense of fulfillment. Sure, we our lives may seem full, but what is truly filling them? It’s not to say we can’t enjoy outside pleasures or that we have to cancel all our activities, but we have to make room for God. If our daybooks are scheduled to the very last minute with the outside world, where and when does God fit into our lives?

We must make ourselves an empty vessel. This is hard to do. It is also an ongoing process. It requires letting go of things we have made a part of us, things we’ve identified ourselves with, and things that hold us to the person we once were. When we empty ourselves we allow God to fill us in the way He sees fit; the way He knows will benefit us the most. The graces that come from allowing God to direct our lives and fill us with His love are amazing! But we can’t receive those graces and that love if we don’t have room for God. It is imperative that we empty our cups of the negatives in our lives, all the pain, all the worries, and anything else that fills our lives so full that God cannot enter in.

God, please help me remember that where there is less of me there is more of You. Please help me to empty my cup so that You can fill it to the brim with Your love and grace. Let me remember that when my cup overruns with blessings it is only because of You.

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:5-6