Are you overflowing… or leaking?

Have you ever experienced the overflow of the Lord? Not “abundance”. Overflow. There is a big difference. Abundance is the experience of having more than enough. To overflow is to be so filled up that you cannot help but pour out whatever you have inside to everyone and anyone who is around you. These words are important to the definition of “overflow”: you cannot help but pour out. Pouring out to others is almost beyond your ability to control when you are living in a state of overflow in the Lord.

In Psalm 45 the Psalmist wrote, “My heart is overflowing with a good thought; I am speaking my works for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skilled scribe.” The natural reaction of someone who lives in a state of overflow in the Lord is to pour that out to everyone around them what the Lord has put into them – joy, peace, wisdom, compassion, praise and thanksgiving, blessing, a word in season, love. Without even trying to, your natural state of existence in overflow will be a testimony to the goodness of God. David wrote, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.” (Psalm 23:5) Notice that David was referring to an overflow while he was in the presence of people who hated him. That’s because the overflow of the Lord has nothing to do with your present condition!

The natural reaction of someone who lives in a state of overflow in the Lord is to pour that out to everyone around them what the Lord has put into them.

Have you ever seen someone who, just by looking at them, you can tell they’re in a bad mood? Or that something bad has happened or that they’re struggling or never happy? If you are leaking anger, discontent or unhappiness, bitterness, pain, resentment, carnality, depression and anything else God didn’t give you, you will dump that all over those around you and people will see it even from a distance because you cannot help but pour out whatever is inside of you. As a Christian, if you are not living in the overflow of the Lord, you probably have a hole in the bottom of your cup, your earthen vessel, yourself.

[Read this next: “Do What They Did to Get What They Have”]

So how do you get into a state of overflow in the Lord? Worship is the first place to start. Why? Because worship is exclusively God-centered. Get the focus off of yourself and everything about your situations, worries and burdens. I don’t mean put on Christian music, or songs about your own strength and empowerment through Christ or long, wordy songs about the sun, moon and stars. I mean get up early, make the time and place to get down on your knees, lift your hands in surrender, touch your face to the ground in humble vulnerability and draw close to God, enter into His gates – with thanksgiving, blessing Him, exalting His name, declaring His greatness, singing a new song to Him. Not in church, not in a Bible study. Alone. How much? How long? AS LONG AS IT TAKES. Worship will bring you the closest to the Lord as you can possible get because it ushers you into His dwelling place (Psalm 22:3) where the spiritual dynamics are different than when He comes to where you dwell.

And while you’re doing that…

1.) Repair the holes: Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of flow the issues of life.” If you desire to live life in a state of overflow in the Lord, instead of leaking all the time, ask the Lord to show you where the holes are and then work to repair them with His help. Some basics include putting to death your flesh and it’s desires, putting down the old man, fasting, prayer, seeking the Lord in His Word, resisting the devil and his temptations. (Colossians 3 and Ephesians 4:25-32 and Galatians 5) 

WATCH: “Renounce the Secret Things of Shame!” LIVE Devotions

2.) Get filled: “…above all these things, embrace love, which is the bond of perfection. Let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you are called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and with grace singing in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:14-17) 

Thought for today

Worship is a lifestyle. Living in the overflow, instead of leaking everywhere, will take effort, sacrifice and commitment because you have an enemy who wants to see you be a vessel for his use! The “old man” in you doesn’t want to stay dead, so you may have to sacrifice your flesh day by day! “But godliness with contentment is great gain,” Paul wrote. (1 Timothy 6:10) Don’t feel strong enough? Good! God can work that! “…we have this treasure in earthen vessels, the excellency of the power being from God and not from ourselves.” (2 Corinthians 4:7-11) “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20) Don’t be fooled into thinking something is wrong with you if you don’t “feel” it – that’s not faith! Here’s how my dad puts it: “Get into the flow and get it as you go!”

Don’t forget to pick up a copy of The Way of the Worshipper on Amazon – and AVAILABLE NOW you can also purchase The Way of the Worshipper: A Devotional Workbook for deeper study, personal examination and spiritual growth!