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Tuesday, Jan 3
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DEVOTIONAL: “GROWTH BY EMPTYING”
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There is a semi-famous illustration of a glass jar filled with so much sand, it has no room for a group of rocks sitting next to the jar. But if you place the rocks in the jar first, then pour in the sand, everything fits. (This illustration is often used as a lesson on time management or priorities.)
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I want to draw out an aspect from this illustration that is often overlooked. As I’ve already said, when the sand is in the jar first, not all the rocks fit. In order for the rocks to fit, the jar must first be emptied of the sand.
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Your life is like that jar. It is filled with a busy schedule of work, school, hobbies, and more. Most of these things aren’t wrong or bad, but they can keep us from things and activities of much greater value. One of the purposes of the 21 Days of Prayer is to help you get the “big rock” of God placed first in your life-jar. But in order for that to happen, you probably need to do some emptying.
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Just as Jesus set aside His throne in heaven to come to earth for you (as you read in Philippians 2), you might need to set aside some things (some of which are good and some of which are not-so-good) in order to be better positioned for the Gospel Growth God wants to do in you. So let me ask you: What might you need to empty out of your life for these 21 Days to prepare for the growth of the Gospel in your life?
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So take some time to genuinely ask yourself:
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- What captures too much of my self-interest?
- In addition to my fasting, what might I be able to give up for 21 Days to create more room for God? (A weekly appointment? An exercise class? A certain weekly TV show or podcast?)
- How can I lessen or get rid of my self-preservation?
- How do I rely on my self-assuredness more than on God and the gospel?
Father, this process of emptying myself is hard, because I either have a blind spot and don’t see the “sand” of my life, or I like my “sand-filled” life too much. So I ask you to empower me through Your Spirit to say “no” to the right things, so I can say “yes” to what you want to do in me. Help me to surrender all of me to you so I might echo the words of John the Baptist in John 3:30, “[Jesus] must increase… I must decrease.”
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Feel free to open your Notes app to write down a thought or two from today's reading or write out your own prayer.
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Sit in silence for 5-10 minutes
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