Fill

Fill

He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

THE MESSAGE WAS SHORT AND SWEET: “Let me fill your cup this Saturday! Message me your address, put your cup on your front step, and I’ll come by and fill it up with Dunn Brothers coffee! You mamas are all amazing and deserve a cup of good coffee.”

It had been a tough couple of months, and the small MOPS community I was a part of had been unable to see one another. So when my friend Erin snapped a photo of her own coffee mug on the porch and offered to make the trip to homes around the area to do the same for others, her idea was met with excitement.

When Saturday arrived, she spent more than two hours driving from one house to the next. Some simply waved. Others left thank-you notes or small gifts next to their mugs. One woman opened her door for a heartfelt conversation. Across porches and on front steps, Erin faithfully filled each mug. As the morning wore on, she found her own joy increase, knowing she was able to bring hope to others in a hard season.

Psalm 107 describes weary travelers longing for their hunger and thirst to be satisfied. God responds with an abundance of “good things” (verse 9). As travelers in this world ourselves, we don’t receive a miserly few drops of water or a small slice of bread from our faithful God. Instead, this outpouring is akin to a cup full to overflowing, a banquet in our honor.

The physical filling is important, but our spiritual filling is even more so. As one translation frames it, “He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” (Psalm 107:9, ESV). Our longing soul hungers for the presence of God. We thirst for the living water Jesus later tells a Samaritan woman only he can provide, a spring of water that will never run out or dry up (see John 4:7-15).

Yet Jesus invites us to not just witness his goodness, but to participate. In the upside-down nature of God’s Kingdom, the last are first, the humbled are lifted up, the poured out become filled. And the physical act of filling someone else’s cup often results in the spiritual nourishment of our own soul. When we refresh others, we’re refreshed ourselves.

Lord, help us notice the longing of our souls. Fill us with your presence. Amen.

-Kristin

One Good Step: Fill someone’s mug by dropping off a drink, inviting them over for coffee, or sending a small gift card.