Friday Thoughts

Working out of the house today. My truck is spending some "valuable" time with the mechanic today {water pump}. Ever heard the Cinderella song "Don't know what you got till it's gone"? That's pretty much how we feel when something like this happens. How many of us think about the water pump until we see, hear, or smell the effects of one going bad?

A water pump is important for a vehicle because it circulates coolant through the engine's cooling system. When it goes bad - serious damage can be done to the engine due to overheating. One of the things that can cause a water pump to go bad is a bad bearing (which is what happened to mine). Some of the symptoms to look for: coolant leaking, engine overheating, strange smells, fluid levels in the radiator going down, pulleys become loose.

I know you didn't show up @ PBC Voice to get a lesson in auto mechanics. I leave that for the PBC Pathfinder page! But I am seeing something in the area of spiritual application here.

The main component in our lives is the heart. It's the primary organ of the body while at the same time a primary organ in our walk with God. We are commanded to love the Lord our God with all our heart. However, over time this spiritual engine can be damaged. Maybe it's a lack of discipline - we haven't checked the fluid levels, we ignore the readings on the gauges, or we don't keep up on the maintenance. All of a sudden (BOOM) something goes out.

Jesus told the woman at the well that the water He gives will become in us a fountain of living water. It's through this fountain of the Holy Spirit that we receive the refreshment in the spirit that we need. When we stop the routine maintenance on our spiritual vehicle: prayer, reading the Word, fellowship with other believers, sharing our faith, exercising our faith in God, etc. We limit the flow of the Spirit through our lives. The water pump isn't able to work properly.

Some of the symptoms:
We overheat - have you found yourself being angered or irritated easily?
We leak - seems as though every spiritual high is followed by a severe plummet.
We grind - every time we open God's Word there is a conviction, relationship aren't working, etc.

How do we fix it?
1 John 1:9 - We confess our sins!
Ephesians 5:18 - We ask God to fill us with the Spirit!
Romans 12:1 - We present our bodies to the Lord!

The great news is that you don't have to replace the pump. The Holy Spirit never leaves us. However, we may have to replace some other things. We might have to adjust our maintenance schedule. And we ought to pay better attention to the gauges!

I love the prayer of David when he confessed his sin to the Lord. Psalm 51 is one of the greatest prayers of confession I have ever read. In verse 12 he says, "Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit."

What's happening in your life? Any strange smells? Are you leaking? Overheating? Grinding? Jesus is waiting!