Sermon Tone Analysis

Running on Empty

The Cup

Intro:

Good morning church and welcome all.

I am glad to be with my family today in this place.

May the Lord bless our time and engage our hearts and minds in the Word as we explore the depths of His love and grace this morning.

If you would go ahead and turn over to , we are going to study a bit on David today and how there were many times when his cup was empty and he felt like he had nothing left to give.

I want to continue our study on the cup, because it isn’t enough to just know that we have a cup and that it needs filled, but we also must understand that sometimes our cup runs empty and in those times, ironically enough it can seem like we are way in over our heads as it talks about in : Read

Pray

Boy there is nothing worse that reaching for my cup in the morning and realizing it is empty.

You know what I am talking about you don’t look, you just keep on tipping and nothing, the cup is empty, but even worse, I have sat there and done it twice, running on empty.

OK, maybe there is something worse.

I remember one trip my wife and I took when we were younger.

We were on our way back from visiting family and we had traveled already about 13 hours.

I couldn’t remember or wasn’t paying attention to the gas tank as we flew on by so many gas stations.

When I finally looked down I realized that our low fuel warning light was not working, and we were on “E”, not close, not on an 1/8 but “E”.

Then I started looking and looking and looking for a gas station with none to be found.

We must have traveled 40 miles before we finally saw the sign.

We were praying like crazy that we would make the 5 miles to gas.

As we pulled into the station we breathed a sigh of relief, we had made it.

That was the day that I found out that E doesn’t stand for exciting, but E stands for exhausted.

We were flat out exhausted from the stress of running on empty.

David, ran on empty many times, we ready through many of the Psalms that tell of his exhausting at Saul’s and others attempts at killing him.

But you know, he was called a man after God’s own heart for a reason, because even when it seemed like he was poured out and empty, he found a way and that was God.

There are those times when you just don’t feel like you have anything left, David did too.

I. Just don’t have anything left –

A. Ever feel like that

1.

David did

a.

Even though God’s anointed

b.

Faces trials at every turn

c.

Saul being one of the biggest contributors

2. Throws the spear at his head

a.

b.

This happened multiple times

c.

Bad bosses

3. Saul chasing him around the desert

B. Sometimes wants to give in

1. Almost does

a.

Cuts the hem

b.

God’ anointed

c.

Realizes this is God’s to deal with –

2. Realizes who fills the cup up

a. Saul is appointed by God

b.

Regardless how I feel

c.

It is God who give us the strength

d.

Let God judge hearts and let us love

3. That’s what happens on empty

a. Sometimes I forget who God is

b.

Why the Psalms always bring me comfort

Keeps me from trying to do it all alone.

It also reminds me that God is the provider

II.

Burned up and Burned out

A. Doing too much for too long

1.

Why this doesn’t happen to David –

a. realizes from the beginning it is God

b.

Against the Philistine

c, Knows it doesn’t depend on Him

2. We all have our Goliath in life

a.

The enemy that looks so big

b.

Trying to beat him on our own

c.

Yet God has strength for us

i. look what David says

ii.

3. Wait expectantly for deliverance

a. Exactly what prayer is for

b.

c.

How do you pray

B. No refills –

1.

Why God is with us – Duet 31:8

a. Don’t get burned up

b.

Don’t get hard hearted

c.

Gives us gas

2. Why we have a Church family –

a.

Why we have Church family

b.

We fuel each other

c.

Don’t have to go it alone

C. Think we have to change the world