Empty Bottle of Water

The Year is 2021

Today were going to do some time travel

were going forward a year to the date

Friday 12 March 2021

Your Out and about

Your going to nip into Sainsburys and buy a bottle of water

Sainsbury’s

Now there is no queing to get into sainsburys

You havent just stood, in the rain or baking hot sun for 35 mins to just get into Sainsburys

No, you have just stepped right in to the store. If you have Kids they are back at school,

but today is a day off but no Home Schooling is needed by you. No no, its all good the teachers have their Job back

So you have just stepped into Sainsburys feeling like a winner you are here to buy an item on your shopping list, a bottle of water

So you go with your children and start walking around the store, looking for the bottles of Water.

You have noticed some empty Bottles of Water on isle 2 but there empty so you venture on.

Now you can go in any direction around the store at the speed of light if you wanted to

because the person infront of you, you dont have have to keep two meters back from.

You dont have to do the awkward trolly dance that we are all doing right now

You can just push right past them.

Now your still on the hunt for water.

You see someone that works there you call out to her, her name can is June. June is the helpful assitant at Sainsbury’s

Now I say helpful because I dont know if you have noticed, right now if you call out to a shopping assistant in any great British Supermarket store they look up at you like a rabit in the headlights and quickly run off down the isle and lose you.

No no June is not like that, because its 2021 she comes over to you, and you ask her where are the bottles of water.

She says they are on Isle 2, and you quite rightly say oh but those bottles are empty.

She replies yes, what you do is you buy a bottle and go home, fill it up from your tap at home to add to your water bill.

You look confused and walk right out of this non social distancing store.

Now would you buy an empty bottle of Water?

No you wouldnt

So then why do we go and invest our time and energy in things that are not important to us.

Isolation

In isolation I believe its showing us things that are actually not important to us.

In isolation maybe that gym membership isnt actually that important

In Isolation working all those hours under the Sun for that company that just furloughed you in an instant, is now not looking like something that is important to us.

Celebreties are now realising that Makeup isnt important, looking good is not important

Our country has realised that the NHS is important and that the big financial places and goverment isnt able to function without the key workers.

Who were once known as low level key staff are now known as very much needed.

We are quickly realiasing things that are important to us

Like our Family

Our loved ones

Our friends

Our Community where we live

Time out the house with the people we love

Time spent celebrating birthdays and events

Time with people

Time growing our relationships with the people around us

Deepening our ties with the people we may have took for granted.

Perhaps you may have been half hearted before in relationships

Not really given a second thought to past friends or family members

Because you were so busy keeping that schedule

Yet now we are realising and learning together through this time of Isolation that deeper relationships is great for our mental health, and well being.

Some people are realising that a relationship with a higher being is also good for our soul.

This Weeks Story Of Hope.

This week we join Saul and a man named Samuel.

Now in this story the isralites have just won their battle against the tribe of Jabesh who has just tried on invade them

Now because they have won this battle under the leaderhip of Saul, the isralites make him King

So they put him on his horse a triumphant and a great leader

They praise him they say yes Saul is our King he has defended us.

Then Samuel the wise prophet, the guy that hears from God.

Says a very wise but strange thing.

“Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart.  And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty.”

What a strange thing to say after a victory of a battle

Right?

Now the people of Israel respected Samuel he was a bit like the monkey in Lion King respected but never truly understood.

Now we fast forward a year into Sauls life

Where we find Samuel paying a second visit to Saul (The King Of Israel)

He gives specific instructions, he tells Saul to go to battle and kill the King Amalek and kill and destroy the whole of Ameleks kingdom.

So Saul summons the people two hundred thousand men on foot, and ten thousand men from the tribe of Judah.

Saul marches his men towards the Kingdom of Amelek and camps in a valley

he says to the alies of Amelek that you are spared but must depart at once

And they do they run off

Saul then gets his 210,000 men and marches on towards Egypt where this King resides, except now he doesnt exactly follow Samuels instructions he spares the King and brings him back to israel and loots the kingdom brings back all the gold and the cattle, he burns everything else but doesnt exactly follow what he was told.

Later on Samuel comes to speak to Saul, he says to him do you not remember what I once said. To not chase after those empty things.

You shouldn’t have brought the king back and certainly not the gold.

He then says that God has spoken and said

your words are important to me but they mean nothing to me if you dont obey my voice. There is no point in offering prayers and worship to me if you dont obey my voice. Dont disobey me.

The Empty Bottle Of Water

Which this brings me back to the empty bottle of water

In our relationships with each other, we tend to not have the technique of listening to one another

We tend to be a bit like Saul and run off into the sun and do as we please

We dont pay much attention to the things that have real meaning in our lives

We chase, beauty, we chase money, we chase work, we chase that career ladder

Things that after all said and done leave us a little empty

Yet all the while we forget the impotant things

Our Family

Our loved ones

Our friends

Our Community where we live

The Time we spend together

A relationship with Jesus, that is fullfilling in every way.

You wouldnt invest in an empty bottle of water

So why chase after Half Hearted and Non Meaningful things?

So after this isolation time remember whats important to you.

This weeks Story of Hope

Dont buy Empty bottles of Water in your life

Dont be like Saul and chase after the Gold and the status

Go and have meaningful relationships

Maybe this week ring that old friend, or call that family member

Spend time with your Kids, Husband or Wife

Go and invest in things that bring meaning to your life

Perhaps look at our free course on Hapiness and fullfillment that we will be running this week

Dont buy empty bottles of water for your life.

Hope this has helped you this week.

If you want we have now created a Facebook Group to keep relationships with people, to make friends and explore what is important in our lives.

Were going to start a free course this week in the group called Life Explored to understand what brings us full happiness and Joy to our lives.

If you want to join the group the link is going to be in the comments.

I look forward to seeing you all next week lets chat in the comments and then head over to the group.