TODAY’S THE CROSS DEVOTIONAL THE WATER PITCHER STORY “If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”” Luke 11:11-13 “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”” Matthew 4:4 Once upon a time there was a water pitcher that was filled with water. The water was filthy. So every time a hand grabbed onto the pitcher and filled up people’s cups with the water, the people received filthy water. One day, the water pitcher realized the problem and decided to empty itself of all the filth. No more, no more, the water pitcher decided. Then the water pitcher turned to a source of pure, clean, delicious, refreshing, fulfilling, hydrating water and filled itself up with this water. The water pitcher was delighted to discover that now it would be able to pour into people’s cups wonderful water! The water pitcher made a mistake, however. It assumed this would be the case from thence forward. But not so, not so. The water pitcher found out if it didn’t continually empty itself of any filthy water and fill itself up with clean, pure water that it would go right back to pouring out filthy water. So the water pitcher, with this new discovery, made a commitment from that time forward to be diligent and devoted to purifying itself whenever necessary and continually being refilled with fresh, clean, and pure water for all the cups that it would henceforth fill! Friend, we who follow Jesus need to continually purge from ourselves anything ungodly, dishonoring, and displeasing to the Lord and to spend time each and every day at the feet of the Lord with our hearts and Bibles open being filled afresh with God’s Spirit who lives inside His followers, with God’s Word which is the Bible, and with the wisdom, love, mercy, grace, hope, peace, joy, and direction He pours into our hearts and lives each and every day. Let’s get rid of the filth and be continually refilled with the Lord so we can pour out onto the world around us the love, grace, mercy, peace, hope, etc. of the Lord Jesus Christ! |