Filling Empty Vessels..

Then he said ‘Go borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbours- empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in you shall shut the door behind you and your sons then pour it into all those vessels and set aside the full ones’ 2 Kings 4: 3-4 NKJV.

A certain widow who was a wife of a prophet who had died came to Elisha for help. Her husband had died but left his family in debt and the creditor was coming to take her two sons as slaves. Elisha asked her what she had and she said she only had a jar of oil, then Elisha asked her to go and borrow empty vessels not a few but a lot , shut the door, and fill them with the oil she had. The widow of Zarephath kept filling the empty vessels with the little oil she had and the oil kept flowing, but the moment the empty vessels finished the oil stopped flowing.

As a business woman when I read this story I couldn’t help but think what if she had borrowed all the empty vessels in the country, she would have not only been able to pay up her debt and leave some for herself, but she also would have been so rich, she would be able to give to others.  I also thought wow this means that the moment we stop filling empty vessels our oil will run out.

You may be thinking but I don’t have any oil so how can I fill empty vessels? When we invest in the lives of others, preach to them, give to them, show them the love of God, pray for them and with them, when we do this and much more our oil will never run dry it will keep flowing and flowing.

Praying for others: Elisha said to the widow that she should borrow empty vessels and shut the door behind them. It means that while she was filling those vessels it was to be done in secret and not for the world to see. When you pray for that boss who is always mean to you at work or that sister who is going through a lot of challenges , you are filling empty vessels, and the more you do this the more the anointing to do much more. So instead of always complaining about people and how badly behaved they are, or how mean they have been to you how about praying for them in secret?

Giving: giving does not always mean giving material things but giving of your time, your words of advice or encouragement, your care, your friendship, your love, little acts of kindness. When you give, you are filling empty vessels, don’t give for the world to see, but give with the right motive, sincerely too, with a heart of love, then your heavenly father will reward you.

Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ; when we share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others, and tell them about the love of Jesus Christ, our lives being the best example of what we are preaching should point them to the Jesus. It may be a small act of obedience to God to talk to a sister or a brother about Jesus, just imagine if the widow didn’t obey the man of God she would have lost her sons to slavery.

To fill empty vessels, we must note that we ourselves must be empty for God to fill us because it is only when God fills us that we can adequately fill others. If we are too full for God to fill us, we will not be able to receive from God. if we are too full of ourselves then there is no room for God to fill us. We must not be half full or quarter full but empty so that God can fill us completely. There are so many empty vessels around us, today look around for them and fill them with the oil that God has put inside of you.