Overflow

Overflow

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace
as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with
hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Roman 15:13

Visiting Atlantic City again after 39 years was interesting because so many changes had taken place. In 1969, when I was last there, the biggest building was two stories tall and the fanciest restaurant.....well, if they had any, we never found them. But now, many of the small shops that lined the boardwalk have been replace with gleaming, towering casinos with five-star restaurants, slots machines and gaming tables. But this devotion isn't about the problems associated with gambling but something that stood out to Nancy and I during our time there.

The verse quoted above talks about us "overflowing with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit". As the Lord touches and fills our lives, we are to overflow with hope, excitement, thanksgiving and joy so that others around us are enouraged and strengthened by what the Lord has done in our lives. The song "Dancing Generation" words it this way:

"It's the overflow of a forgiven soul
And now we've seen you God
And our hearts cannot stay silent"

Looking out the window of our 8th floor room in the Hilton Resort, we could not only see the beautiful beach and the ocean below but also the old, rundown buildings next door to the casino. And everywhere we walked, right next to the fanciest casinos you could imagine, there were old, dilapadated, abandoned buildings. With all the wealth and opulence of the casino resorts, there just wasn't any overflow to the surrounding community.

The kingdom of God has blessings and benefits beyond anything we could ever hope for. And most of us reading this devotion have experienced them to some degree. But do they overflow our lives and, by so doing, bless the lives of those around us as we share the good things the Lord has done in each of us and as our lives declare the goodness of God? Unlike the casinos of Atlantic City, let's make sure that our lives are in overflow status and that as we are blessed, we allow that blessing to flow out to others and reveal just how good our God really is.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
King's Gate Church