Filled to Overflowing
By Jessica Brodie
The water filter broke irreparably on my refrigerator, so I’ve been using a standalone water filtration system to filter my water. I drink a lot of water, and I know filtered water is better for me, plus my son insists it tastes better. It’s a relatively simple process—I keep the filter next to my kitchen sink, so all I have to do is slide the faucet over and into the container, then wait patiently as it fills up.
But sometimes I’m busy, with concoctions cooking on the stove that need stirring or toast in the toaster about to get too brown, so I play this little “can I make it?” game with my water filter. I carefully balance the faucet nozzle atop the container, turn it on, then rush over to grab the toast and stir the spaghetti sauce, returning in time to turn off the water before it overflows.
It's a dumb game, because once in a while, I don’t make it in time. The water overflows, sloshing all over the counter and onto the floor, and I’m stuck with a bigger mess than slightly overbrowned toast. Still, I keep doing it, partly because I’m an optimist convinced I’ll make it in time, and partly because I justify the thirty seconds saved will somehow mean something. (And maybe partly because I’m a glutton for punishment, or bullheaded, but I digress.)
Today, it struck me that my water container reminds me a little of the Holy Spirit within us. For those of us who are genuine Christian believers, the Holy Spirit lives inside each of us. The Holy Spirit is a gift, a part of the triune God that Jesus left behind to help us after he ascended into heaven (John 14:26).
We know from Acts 2 that the Holy Spirit isn’t some tame kitten we can tuck inside a basket and maneuver whenever and wherever we wish. The Spirit is a mighty force of a being, a mighty part of God that fills us to the brim. And when he moves—watch out, world! Amazing things happen.
The Bible tells us that on the day of Pentecost the disciples “were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:1-4 NIV).
We know that oxygen does something transformative to fire—supplied by wind, oxygen helps a fire burn more intensely, even explosively, often out of control.
And what happened with the believers that day, on Pentecost, was like oxygen to a fire. As the believers were filled with the Spirit, the Spirit exploded within them, fanning out like a wild, uncaged beast. Flames sparked from one to another, catching up all in a massive eruption of oneness with the Lord God Almighty. That day, 3,000 new followers of Christ were added to their number, and more and more each day from there. That explosion continues today.
It wasn’t just the number of people filled with the Holy Spirit that was staggering—it was their combined power. Look at Simon Peter, for instance. Once a fisherman and Christ-follower known for his impetuous nature, when Peter fully surrendered to the Holy Spirit, he was almost unrecognizable. Imbued with the power of the Lord, he performed miraculous healings and drove out demons, daily adding many to the Kingdom of God.
We all have that power, too, because of the Spirit within us.
My question today is what are we doing with the fire of the Holy Spirit inside of us? Are we funneling oxygen to the fire, stoking it so it burns wildly, igniting other fires for Jesus everywhere we go? Or are we trying to contain that fire into a little box, holding it close so it doesn’t get out of control?
Like my water filter, are we filling it up just enough so all the water does what we want, or are we allowing it to spill out over the edges, splashing all over the place with reckless abandon?
We must remember that the Holy Spirit, God within us, is not something we can or should attempt to control. We don’t have any idea of the plans God has for this world, for what the Kingdom of God will one day look like when God’s purpose and glory are fulfilled. We cannot even imagine the complexity or the beauty! Remember: The first disciples thought Jesus was only the messiah for the Jews. Jesus himself said, when a Canaanite woman begged him to heal her daughter, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel. … It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:24, 26). But she responded, “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
In response, Jesus praised her faith and healed her daughter. And later we, and all the disciples as well, come to understand the Gospel isn’t just for the lost sheep of Israel—it’s for the whole world. As Jesus commanded his disciples before his ascension, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).
All nations. All peoples. All—without limits. Without confines.
At home, I’m still making sure to turn off the faucet when I fill my water container. But when it comes to the Holy Spirit, I don’t want an off-switch. I don’t want anything I do to stop that water from going everywhere.
Let that water of the Spirit gush out, flowing over all, so that all may hear the Good News and come to Christ for eternity.
A prayer: Lord, I pray today that You use me to help, not hinder, the power of the Holy Spirit at work in the world. Help me be a catalyst for the Good News in all ways possible. Amen.
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