Posted on by Jennifer Tritsch

The Power of Empty

Have you ever heard the statement, “You can’t pour from an empty cup”? I beg to differ. Yes, you can. In fact, you not only can; but you should.

First, let’s examine the statement. Where did it come from? What does it mean? There is a movement these days, particularly among women, that has been cloaked in something that appears to be truth. It sounds good and seems to make sense, so it must be right. Right? The idea is that, when you give so much of yourself to others, you pour yourself out until there is simply nothing left to give. Therefore to give more, you must first refill yourself. You give back to yourself with self-care and me time doing something for yourself so you can continue to give of yourself. 

This message sounds so good, especially to the over-worked, sleep-deprived, worn-out, stressed-out, neglected woman who has been so busy with life she’s forgotten who she is. She daily looks in the mirror and cringes. All that’s left of who she used to be a decade or more ago is a distant memory. Her body has changed over the years and will likely never be the same. She is mentally exhausted and stressed over endless things. She feels isolated, forgotten, and unimportant. Her spirit is parched. Even in a crowd, she feels very much alone. She tries, but her heart is empty. And then, she hears, “You can’t pour from an empty cup.” It soothes her mind. It gives her a sense of honor in all that she does, even without appreciation from anyone else. And it whispers an idea in her ear that she needs to stop caring about all the responsibilities around her and focus on herself for once. She deserves, and desperately needs a break. Besides, she can’t keep giving if there’s nothing left to give. What about her neglected needs?

The enemy has twisted the idea of self-care. In and of itself, self-care is not wrong; in fact, it’s needed. We have been instructed through Scripture to care for the temple of God, which is our bodies. It is important to eat right, exercise, and get plenty of sleep each night. It is good to laugh, savor life, and enjoy wholesome hobbies and interests. Some need alone time, and others need the comfort of their friends. Each individual has different needs and desires. But we’re on dangerous ground when we start to feel sorry for ourselves and to withdraw because of life’s injuries or when we focus on our social isolation and material deficiencies. There’s nothing wrong with reprioritizing and making time for yourself, but we must be aware of this world’s foolish wisdom. Before questioning life’s unfairness and people’s ungratefulness, question your emptiness.

We were created empty. Adam’s lungs were void and uninflated, until the breath of God Himself filled them. Then, they began to work. The empty chambers of his heart were filled with blood that was transported by a network of arteries and veins that nourished his body with the oxygenated life source. Only when he was filled with the life-giving breath of God did he become a living soul. Even though our bodies seem to function on their own, it is the breath of God that keeps us going. We were made empty to be filled by Him. It was a physical manifestation of something very spiritual. Perhaps, our emptiness has less to do with all we’ve given of ourselves and more to do with our need for more of Him.

There is something powerful about emptiness. Only when a vessel is truly empty can it be filled. It must first be poured out. Jesus said, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (Mat. 5:6). I pray that God empties me of myself to fill me with Him. This prayer must be daily because my human nature continually wants me full of myself. I must pour myself out in a daily sacrifice of consecration and commitment. I don’t need more of me; I need more of Him!

Like an Old Testament drink offering, we must pour out ourselves as a sacrifice to God. We offer ourselves to God empty of selfish desires and lusts and arrogance so that we may be filled with His righteousness. Only then can we truly be fulfilled.

Pouring out our selfish wants and neglected needs requires pouring out our frustrations, temptations, insecurities, disappointments, regrets, and sorrows. Hannah was barren and was “in bitterness of soul” and “wept sore” over her childlessness (1 Sam. 1:10). She vowed to God that, if He would bless her with a son, she would return him to God “all the days of his life” (1 Sam. 1:11). As she was praying this prayer at the temple, the priest Eli saw her and thought she was drunk because she was praying so intently in her heart, only moving her mouth silently (1 Sam. 1:12-13). When he scolded her, she said, “I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord” (1 Sam. 1:14-15). She had carried the weight of her disappointment and sorrow for many years, but had finally decided to pour them out to God. In return, God granted her request and gave her the son she so desired. She then kept her promise; and when he was weaned, she brought the child Samuel to the priest to serve in the temple. The fruit of her emptiness would later become the prophet who anointed David King of Israel.

Your empty feelings may, in fact, be quite the opposite of what you originally thought. Instead, you may be full—full of hurt, anger, bitterness, disappointment, or sorrow. Is there so much on your mind when you lay your head on your pillow at night that is spills onto your cheeks? Do you live in silent pain telling no one? Pour it out. Let go of your wants. Release your neglected needs. Surrender the sorrow. Empty yourself of you so that you can be filled with the Breath of Life and experience the joy of true fulfillment.

Posted on by Jennifer Tritsch

Perspective

Thank God for 2020.

There, I said it.  Don’t shoot.

It was the year that started with such promise and potential.  We were all in our perfect little bubbles of routines, surrounded in our orbs of self, and wrapped in our blankets of security; and then sometime after Valentine’s Day, reality came along and popped our bubble.  And no, I’m not trying to make light of a global pandemic that killed millions of people, devastating wildfires, swarms of locusts and murder hornets, riots, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, or tornadoes.  I realize this past year has been seemingly nothing short of the eleventh plague.

But I thank God for this year.

Yes, I am painfully aware that practically every major (and minor) event was cancelled this past year — weddings, birthdays, funerals, vacations, holiday parties, and church services with all of the events surrounding them — all cancelled. Every one of us have at least one or more story of something important that we missed.  I saw the graduating class of 2020 get cheated out of their ceremonies, proms, and parties.  I watched the Homegoing service of my own Pastor’s wife online.  There were two weddings I didn’t get to attend.  For the first time in my life, I missed Easter Sunday services as I huddled in my underground storm shelter with my family waiting out the tornadic activity all around us.  And not only was 2020 simply inconvenient. Millions became unemployed nearly overnight. Businesses — both small and large — went under. Industries were wiped out, and some will never recover.  Much of our nation — even our world — was brought to its knees.

And I thank God for this year.

Personally speaking, not much changed for me on a day to day basis during our isolation time.  I am already a stay-at-home mother of four, three of which I homeschool and one of which I chase around the house during his entire waking hours trying my best to prevent a catastrophe.  My daily life is centered around keeping everyone clothed, fed, educated, and somewhat happy.  About the only thing that changed for me during all the mandated quarantine was not being able to get everything I was used to getting at the stores for my family and having to make do.  (But hey, I learned how to make bread!)  But my heart went out to all of the families suddenly thrust into the life of homeschool without preamble and with no resources, not to mention the children who relied heavily on their schools for regular meals.

I ached and prayed for my many friends and family who were suddenly without jobs.  We went through an initial financial scare ourselves, but God came through in a major way at just the right time.  Many of our loved ones fell sick, but they recovered. Thank you, Jesus!  We prayed and fasted more together as a family than we ever have.  We spent more quality family time together this year than we ever have.  But perhaps, the greatest blessing of all this year for me was when the Lord raised my mother from her deathbed.  It wasn’t even COVID-19 that got her there. It was a failing liver.  I got to spend over a month with her while she lived with us as I tried to nurse her back to health.  Not only did God completely heal her physically; but He also repaired her broken heart as she was married to a wonderful, God-fearing man this past December.

I’ve watched my girls grow even closer to each other than they already were.  While the rest of the world was on pause, my family strengthened.  Yes, we were inconvenienced.  There was frustration, and even some tears were shed.  Not every day was picture perfect.  In fact, most of them were monotonous and boring at best and downright depressing at worst.  But as I look back over this incredibly challenging year, I see the hand of God.  He stepped in and took over our lives.  He was and still is moving us like chess pieces on a board, all for our good, even when we don’t understand it.

I thank Him for it.

Through the years I have tried to challenge myself to find the good in every situation.  I’m not always successful at it, but I do try to make it a personal habit.  I was dedicated to the Lord as a newborn infant, as was my husband and all four of my children.  So, of course, I want nothing but His will for our lives.  That means letting God be God even during the trials.  That means trusting Him in every situation and leaning not to my own understanding.  That means living a consecrated life of devotion to Him even when I don’t like living that life.

As my mother lay in critical condition in an ICU bed and I was unable to be there with her, I had to pray a prayer of release.  It was a very difficult prayer to pray, especially after losing my father two years ago.  As an only child, I was so scared of being left alone without her.  But I had to let God be God.  And if it was His will to take her, then I had to trust it was the right time.  It was by far one of the most difficult prayers I have ever prayed up until that point in my life, but I did it.  I asked Him to heal her if it was His will, but if it wasn’t His will, to take her with as little pain as possible, much the same way He took Daddy.  Then, little by little, day by day, I watched her slowly regain her strength one terrifying, wobbly step at a time.  I watched her lab value levels slowly decline from lethal to dangerous to borderline to normal.  I watched her skin color slowly change from dark orange to pale orange to yellow to pink.  Her speech went from garbled to slurred to weak to clear and coherent.  I listened to her doctor tell me that she could die at any minute. Then he said that maybe she could get a little better. Later, her recovery was a good possibility. And finally, he said that she was miraculously healed.  And then, the most amazing thing of all happened! Her tears turned to laughter, her profound sadness to utter joy, and her panic to peace as I watched her say her wedding vows to one of the kindest, gentlest men I have ever met.

My God did that.

I know you’ve heard it said many times that hindsight is 20/20; and you’ve probably heard it said by now that, as soon as the clock struck midnight on the first day of January, 2020 was finally hindsight.  But as cliché as it may sound, I want to truly have 2020 vision.  I want to look back over this year and see the order even through all the chaos.  None of this year took God by surprise.  It was all part of His divine plan from pandemics to politics and my house to the White House.  God allowed it to happen.  Dare I say it?  He made it happen.  (Daniel 2:20-22)

I cannot and will not curse this year.  I refuse to join so many others who are talking about throwing it out like yesterday’s trash.  God was too good to me.  I can’t and won’t complain.  This year was a gift, and I will gratefully receive it.  I choose to see it with my 2020 vision.  It is with a thankful heart that I look back, and with great anticipation that I look forward to the balance of 2021.  I have no idea what it holds; but I’m ready for it, whatever it may be.  It’s all about perspective, and I’ve tried my best to adjust mine.  This year has made me step back to take notice of all I have, rather than what I lack.

God help us all to see with 2020 vision.

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that thou art –
Thou my best thought, by day or by night;
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

attr. St. Dallan Forgaill, trans. Eleanor Hull
Posted on by Jennifer Tritsch

Tempted on the Mountaintop

Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.  Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Matthew 4:8-11

I heard it over and over again as a little girl growing up on an Apostolic pew—sermon after sermon about the great mountaintop experience we can have with the Lord:

  • If only we could leap from mountaintop to mountaintop while skipping the valley!
  • The climb is worth all the effort in the end!
  • It’s the highest possible place you can go spiritually in the Lord while still being bound to an earthly body!
  • The great goal in our daily walk is to make it to the next mountaintop!

There always seemed to be some alluring mystery hidden beneath the cloudy haze covering the peak piercing the horizon of my young mind’s eye.  If only I could make it to the mountaintop!  I so wanted to know what it meant to be at the pinnacle of my spiritual walk.

It wasn’t until much later that I learned exactly what it means to be on the mountain.  It means isolation.  It can be a hard and barren place with nowhere to rest.  The conquest of the crest awards the cragsman an exposed vulnerability like never before.  Yes, you may see for miles from the summit; but you often see only a heavy fog covering the land below with a vision no clearer than what you beheld at the base.  The mountaintop experience isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.  It takes a while to get up, and it takes a while to get back down.  You may get weary on the way.  You may even get hurt.  It’s a climb and descent that can prove very trying, indeed.

I have read the above passage multiple times throughout my life, but never have the verses stood out to me as they did with this year’s daily reading.  The words leaped from the page to flip the switch of revelation and illuminate the Scriptures before me.  Don’t you love it when that happens?

The devil led Jesus to the mountaintop.

We often think of the mountaintop experience as being the highest spiritual experience in the Lord.  But this verse lets us know that being on the mountain doesn’t mean you’re supposed to be there.  The devil led Jesus there.  Let that sink in.  How many times have we credited the Lord with our mountaintop experience?  It may very well be divine; but it may not be, as well.

When thinking of some of the great men of God I have known throughout my lifetime that have appeared to be giants in ministry, highly successful, in demand, and at the top of their game, I recall watching them fall into the cleft of compromise; and it makes me wonder if their mountaintops were where they really needed to be at those particular times in their ministries.  They had reached a peak only to stumble and fall, and some fell to never rise again.

What a powerful lesson from the mountaintop!  Make your footing sure.  Whether you’re led there by God or by Satan himself, you need the proper equipment to ensure a secure foothold.  And that leads to the next revelation God gave me.

Jesus was tempted on the mountain.

One might envision the valley as a place of temptation, a place of depression or lowness.  (And I personally know it to be that way.)  But how often do we think of the mountaintop as being a place of temptation?  The more I think about it, the more it makes sense to me.  You are exposed, without shelter, and in a very vulnerable place at the summit.  Your heightened vision may give way to pride.  And pride comes before destruction and arrogance before a fall (Pro. 16:18).

I believe it is safe to say that temptation can come literally anywhere in your walk with the Lord.  Nowhere is a safe zone as long as we are in these mortal bodies that are under the curse of sin.  In truth, no one is saved until they make it to Heaven.  The next time you find yourself high in the clouds with Jesus, make sure you’re holding on tighter than ever to His hand.  And above all else, don’t stop praying.  It’s easy to find yourself in your prayer closet when everything is falling apart and nothing is sure in life.  But what about during the good times when all is well?  Those may be the most crucial times to pray.

He needed to receive ministering on the mountain.

We all know how Jesus fought and won the temptation over the devil with the Word of God, and we know the importance of Scripture as a weapon in our arsenal against the enemy.  But something I think that gets overlooked is the very last part of verse 11 where it says the devil left Him and the angels came and ministered to Him.  He was on the mountaintop and still needed to receive ministering.  Just because you’ve reached a spiritual high doesn’t mean you’ve arrived at a place where you no longer need something from the Lord or from others.  You may need to receive ministering, instead of being the one who does the ministering.

We can learn a lot from the valley, but we may learn even more from the mountain.  Your highest spiritual experience may very well be the most dangerous of your everyday walk.  Be aware, hold tight, and pray unceasingly.

Posted on by Jennifer Tritsch

The Rock at Rock Bottom

Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.

Psalms 130:1

Rock bottom.  Ever been there?  What a dark, desolate place it can be.  There is no light of hope.  There is no fresh wind of change.  There is no music of the promise of tomorrow.  There is only the darkness and you.  There is only the stagnant scent of your own failure.  The only sound you hear is silence as you find yourself in total isolation.  Oh! What a deafening noise that can be.

What exactly is rock bottom, or where is it located?  Rock bottom is a state of being.  It is the lowest possible level of life from which you may sink no further like an impenetrable bedrock.  There is nothing below it.

You experience the murky depths of rock bottom in every imaginable way: emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, and even physically.  Rock bottom hurts.  The descent through the pit that leads to rock bottom ends with the agonizing thud of finality.  This is where you are broken.  Without even the equilibrium necessary to sit aright, you sense every ounce of your spirit to stand weep from your wounds.  You bleed.  You sob until your final tear is spent.  Then, you lie there and wait.  You wait for what’s next—something, nothing, anything, rock bottom.

Even though rock bottom is the hardest and loneliest place, your most treasured blessing is hidden there: the opportunity to start over and to rebuild.  Rock bottom holds hope, preserves promise, and cradles change.  There are blessings that only rock bottom can give, and I’d like to share four of them with you today.

Revelation

Hitting rock bottom can be a time of great awakening—a time to realize exactly where you are, how you got there, and ultimately, why.  I fully realize some land here due to extenuating circumstances, but I have found that the majority who fall in this fissure do so because of selfishness.  The insulated bubble where you mindlessly floated popped, and it popped rather abruptly.  There’s nothing quite like being slapped in the face by reality to wake one out of one’s dreamworld.  Receive it.  It’s a gift.

Wake up to realize you’re no longer in your self-absorbed orb.  It’s not all about what you want, what you think you deserve, or what you’ve lost.  You may have even hurt someone else on your way down to rock bottom.  If that has happened, take this time to think of them for a change.

Reflection

There’s nowhere else to look but up, and what a vantage point it is!  From the perspective of being flat on your back you can see not only how far you’ve come but also the path that led you there.  Look for the steps that led to your falling and destruction.  Learn from them.  Mark them.  Avoid them at all costs so that you may never again repeat them.

Readjustment

Now is the time to change positions in your attitude, your outlook, and your entire way of thinking.  Possibly the most valueable and important part of a true restart—a rock bottom readjustment can reset your moral compass and establish the steps of your much brighter future.  To falter now could ensure you remain ensared in despair.  To make your footing sure, you must realize that the Rock at rock bottom is Jesus Christ!

You cannot escape His presence.

Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

Psalms 139:7-12

Cry out to Him.

…Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Psalms 61:1-2

He is a steady, sure, solid, and unchanging Rock; and that Rock is Christ!

Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

Ephesians 2:19-22

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.

Isaiah 28:16

Jesus Christ is your stability.  He is the firm foundation upon which to carry out the final blessing of rock bottom.

Rebuild

Your life will continue to fall apart without a sure foundation.  A faulty foundation is the very reason everything has crumbled around you time and again.  It’s the reason nothing stays together in your life.  It’s the cause of the cracked walls in your life.  It’s why doors fail to open and close properly.  You must have a steady, firm foundation.

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

Matthew 7:24-27

Notice in Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish builders that He did not say the rains ceased for either one.  Rebuilding your life does not promise easy times, but it does ensure a way to withstand the storms.  Rebuilding with your own tools will only end in failure.  There is only One Who can rebuild your broken life, and only His tools will ensure your success. Joseph Hardin (CuppaJoe) wrote in his article, To Rebuild a Temple, “Just because you’ve arrived at this point in your life does not denote that this is the end. There’s far more to your story than this current chapter.”

You must recognize your need for a Savior.  You cannot save yourself.  No one can save you but Jesus Christ.  He’s the only sinless One who died for you, therefore He is the only One who can save you.

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

You must repent.  Repentance is a transformative change of heart.  It is a change in direction.  You must change your direction, otherwise you’ll keep falling into the same pit where you now find yourself.  You must die to sin.  You must deny your own self—your own desires and ways.  True repentance surpassess sorrow to become the first step in your spiritual rebirth.

You must bury the dead man through water baptism, taking on the name of Jesus and becoming a brand new creature (see Acts 2:38-39; 2 Corinthians 5:17).

You must receive the Spirit of the Lord through the infilling of the Holy Ghost (see John 3:1-5; Luke 11:11-13; Acts 2:1-4; 12-18).

Connect with a Spirit-filled, Bible-believing, Truth-teaching church; and surround yourself with Godly influences.  Practice daily prayer, Bible reading, and devotion time.  Think on good things (Philippians 4:8).  And you will discover He has delivered you from the pit.  And He will steady your feet and guide your steps.

…I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

Psalms 40:1-3

If you know the Rock at rock bottom, you know a love and security unlike any other.  You have been to the pit and felt that peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7).  You have an experience—a testimony.  Only a broken soul can offer wholeness to others, and only one who has reached the bottom knows the entire way to the top.  Help someone else find the Rock at their rock bottom.

God gave this message to Jennifer who then collaborated with Delbert to write this article.  She wrote the lion’s share of it.