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| Friday, May 06, 2011 |
| Chosen Cup |
“The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot”(Psalm 16:5).
When we were little we had special ceramic cups.
On the outside of them was written “What’s in the bottom of the cup?” Each cup looked just like the others except in the bottom of each was a different animal—a fish, a cat, a dog. Mom chose the cup for each of us to have and we had to drink all of what was in it to find out who got which animal. Most of the time it worked. Eventually we each developed a favorite and a twinge of jealousy would creep in if a sibling got that animal instead. Human nature.
Mom not only chose what cup we got but how much was in it, and what was in it. Sometimes it was milk, other times juice. As we grew, the amount in the cup increased. Our hands were steadier so we wouldn’t slosh and our bodies were bigger, thus needing more nourishment.
Isn’t that the way it is with the Christian life?
God not only chooses the cup we should bear, but the portion in it. Perhaps they look the same on the outside at first glance, but our cup is designed specifically for us. So is the portion we receive.
Luke 12:48 says,“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (NIV).
The more we grow in faith and trust that God is indeed the One who must be in control of our cup (life), the more we are given to fill it. However, that means we are also carrying a heavier load, because much more is being demanded of us.
There will also be more trials and temptations because we are separating ourselves more and more from the fallen world and our human nature. We talk about God never giving us more than we can bear. That is in the good things as well as the uncomfortable ones. Often times, when all is going great and the road is smooth, we have a tendency to want to be the one to take the wheel and drive.
Or, to stick with the analogy of the cup, we want to choose what goes in it, or worse, take credit for what is inside. We might even feel twinges of jealousy that someone else’s cup is fuller, or be envious of what is in it. But God, like my Mom, has put something good inside, whether it is what we want at the time or not. How often do we whine because we wanted chocolate milk and only got regular or orange juice instead of grape?
Psalm 23 says, “my cup runneth over” (vs. 5b KJV).
The more we trust God to pour what we need into our cup, the more it will overflow. However, this is where the analogy of the “What’s in the bottom of the cup” veers off. Mom would scold us if we sloshed the contents of our cups as we carried them to the table. God, on the other hand, wants us to pour out ourselves for others – to slosh some of His blessings on those around us.
If you ever feel you are getting to the end of God’s blessings for you, what will be in the bottom of your cup? Truth be told, we all have the same thing at the bottom of our cups. It is His Son with nail scarred hands, reaching out for us in love. Receive that, and the cup will fill up again. So, go ahead. Drink in His goodness. There is more where that came from.
Questions: How full is your cup? Why do you think that is?
By : Julie Cosgrove
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posted by Admin @ 5:27 PM   |
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