Fill Me Up

The other day I asked a group of girls to tell me the top 5 things that could take a totally fabulous day and make it go right down the drain. The answers were pretty typical; boys being uninterested, friends being mean, fights with parents, bad grades, being sick. . . You know, I may be 17 years older than some of these girls, but truthfully my list doesn't look that different. Its funny how some things change and others always seem to stay the same.

I wasn't asking the question because I didn't know how they would answer, though. I was asking the question because I wanted to find out what they do to recover in those moments of disappointment and discouragement. How do you respond when the events of your day don't quite measure up to your hopes and expectations?

I won't share the personal details of their answers here, but I'll give you a glimpse into my crisis management mode. The answer for me is simple: I call my mom.

Maybe you're not supposed to need your mom so much when you're 31. But there is just something comforting about hearing her voice when things have flopped. You see, no matter what anyone else thinks of me, I know my mom will always love me. She has to. Its her job.

So when I'm bummed and discouraged I can call my mom and talk until my face turns blue. She'll listen, sometimes process with me and give me advice, and I hang up the phone feeling a little bit better. The negative events in my life drain me; they pour water out from my cup. Talking to my mom fills me up.

Now, I'm pretty much in favor of that plan. I think its a good one. Except that sometimes it doesn't exactly work out. Believe it or not, sometimes my mom doesn't answer her phone. Sometimes she is out walking the dog, or out with friends, or at the grocery store. Sometimes she even goes on vacations where she is unreachable for days on end!! (I'm not exactly sure why she thinks that is acceptable. . . but I'm trying to extend grace. . . )

So what do I do when I feel hurt by a friend or frustrated with a circumstance in those moments? Do I keep calling until her caller ID reports 48 missed calls when she finally returns home? Do I sit in a corner and cry my eyes out, feeling lost and aimless with my empty cup?

Or, could there be a better way?

Could there be another solution to the frustrating events of my day that isn't dependent on my mom being available to me whenever and wherever I need her?

Tell you what girls - there is a better way. There is another place I can go to for comfort when things aren't so hot. There is a way to fill my cup back up with living water; water that will be available every moment of every day for the rest of my life.

I can go to Jesus.

You see, this relationship I have with Jesus is a 24hr thing. He is never out walking the dog or comparing prices at the supermarket. He is always with me; ever ready to take my hurting heart into his healing hands.

What do you do when your day takes a turn for the worst? Have you ever thought of going straight to your knees and talking to your Creator? He is there, and He is longing to be the One who fills you up when you need it most.

I want you to take 10 minutes today and read an amazing story in John 4. It tells about a woman who met Jesus at a well one day. . . and let's just say that Jesus filled her cup. Not only did he fill it up, but he promised that the water he gave would satisfy her every thirst.

Here's the other crazy cool thing about that story; Jesus knew everything about her. He knew all of the dark, secret, sad pieces of her life story. He knew those things, and he wanted to offer her living water still.

I think sometimes my desire to talk to my mom is really a longing to connect with someone who knows me. She's walked through life with me for the last 31 years, so for the most part - she gets me. I can be myself around her because there is really no use trying to be anyone else.

Have you ever thought about the fact that Jesus knows you that well, too? He sees every part of us, and he longs to satisfy our deepest longings and needs anyway. His love for us is, honestly, unreasonable. But he offers it, nonetheless.

The more we turn to him when things go wrong, the more we'll find that his love is enough and his comfort sufficient for everything we will face in life. Its an important skill to learn, girls, because there will come a time when the problems are deeper and bigger and harder than tests, friends and frustrating parents.

We need to know what to do when things go wrong - even little things - so that when the day comes that something really big goes wrong, we aren't alone. We need to be prepared, so that in that moment we know exactly where to go, who to turn to, and what to do.

I love talking to my mom.

But Jesus fills my cup.

Everyone who drinks this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

-Jesus, John 4:13-14