Hole in the Bucket
Mark 5:8-20
And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon- possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.” And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.
There is a small group of my friends that God uses to constantly encourage me with living out their faith; true disciples of Christ battling the world just like all of us, but living with an eternal view. We talk about all the same worldly things in our lives, but at some point in our conversations it always turns to our faith and what God has been showing us since our last talk. That is our true desire, to share what God has been showing us in his Word, through experiences with day to day encounters, through what we see of Him in our day to day lives. There is honestly nothing else I would rather discuss that what you have been experiencing in Him; my attention span and boredom kick in without a measure of faith mixed in our discussion.
My struggles with memory comes from a mix of extended drug abuse, genetics, and stress. I can read something, comprehend it, be genuinely moved by it, and an hour later can’t retain it. With the genetic side, that is terrifying. I have a hole in my bucket I am constantly trying to fill. God showed me recently how sin removes my finger and increases the flow rate. You can’t live with one foot in the world and one foot stretching for heaven; the gravity of sin will keep you here. What do you struggle with? What is your focus in life? What do you want to discuss more than anything? Do you see how the demon-possessed man in Mark wanted to talk about nothing but his healing? Jesus commanded him to go share his testimony of faith to all that would hear. If you are truly saved, that same commandment and desire should be welling up inside of you. If you claim Christianity and desire to discuss money, possessions, sex, success, sports, partying, anything that this world desires, are you truly saved? Do you rest in the false religion of Sunday Christianity that condemns? “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew7:21-23 NKJV)
My testimony to you is one on incredible mercy and grace; I felt like Paul a chief of sinners, I felt like David who committed great sins, I now feel indescribable forgiveness that I so desire for you to have also. My heart lies not only reaching the lost, but in the incredible difficult ministry of Matthew 7; those that think they are saved, those who sit beside you on Sunday, those who profess Christianity but are not disciples, those who are truly lost…… Jesus spoke in parables all throughout the New Testament for so many could not understand. Their hearts were hardened to God’s Word, many rested in religion and the rituals of it. Jesus had come to fulfill the Law that they could not, and they rejected him because of their hardened, prideful, religious hearts.
I promise you, you will know when you are saved. If you are doubting it, that may be your warning from God to change your focus in life. This life is preparing you for the eternal life; how you spend this life directly correlates to your eternal life’s reward or condemnation. My hole in my bucket is no different from yours, it is sin, and it is plugged by the heart that desires to live their life for Jesus. My testimony is one simply of a repent hearts plea for forgiveness and the desire to read my Bible every day. There is nothing anyone can say that will change you like the Word of God. You cannot spend daily time in Gods Word and remain the same person as the day before. The assurance of salvation you so desire is found through a humble heart that seeks Him there each and every day. Plug the hole in your bucket with Jesus
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