Vanity part 5
The opposite of vanity (emptiness) is fullnes. That makes sense, right? In the beginning we were dark and void and without form. But then God said, "Let there be light" and filled us up with light. Filled us up with love. Filled us up with Himself. And then we fill ourselves to overflowing with what He has filled us with. Look at Pasalm 24:3-4, "Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully." Let me say that another way. The Pastor Tom translation, as it were. "Who can experience the things that God has given to him? He that receives it and releases it, instead of wasting his three T's (Time, Talent, Treasure) in order to try to get it." Lifting up your soul into vanity, to me, means trying to fill that void yourself. Trying to fill a God-shaped, love-shaped void with any and every thing else. It's that idea of the robber who comes not but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. It's the idea that when WE try to get something ourselves, instead of receiving and releasing what He has already given us... we are robbing ourselves of what we've already been given. And that, friends, is vanity. That is screaming into the void. Complaining about what you don't have instead of enjoying what you do have. It's a matter of perception. A matter of focus. Magnifying the God (the love) in our lives so that it will manifest in our lives. What you feed is what will grow. What you put into it is what you get out of it. What you give yourself to determines and defines what you experience. So if you give yourself to love... you will experience love. If you give what you've got instead of running around like that old chicken with it's head cut off trying to get something... you'll be able to experience what you've got. Love is giving. You can give without loving, but you can't love without giving. They aren't just connected, they are the same thing. Vanity is emptiness. Trying to fill that emptiness yourself. Ascending into the hill of the Lord... standing in that Holy Place... that's letting God fill you up with HIMSELF. Being still and knowing that HE is God. Not trying to get something you thnk you haven't got by trying to be someone you're not, but knowing and believing that you are who God says you are. Knowing and believing that you have what God says you have. And then doing someting WITH what you have. Life is not about getting. It's about giving what you've got. Knowing what you've got, and sharing what you've got. That's how you build relationships with people. That's how you affect people's lives in a positive manner. That's how you build people up and edify them. That's what we all need in this life. We need help. We need bonds and connections. We need each other. And the only way for us to be connected to each other is through the bond of love. We don't need love. We have love. What matters is what we do with that love that we have. What matters is that we get past the vanity (emptiness) and into the abundance (fullness) of God's love!