Better Yourself vs. Be Nourished So You Overflow

We’re a do-it-faster culture. Finish strong. Better yourself.

We carry it like an ill-fitting weight, and it’s true that it drains us. Because good-enough is never enough.

The perfectionist inside deeply gets it. Gets the way an exhale becomes something to earn. The hustle a measure of comparison. The outcome of utmost importance.

The busy and push and striving cinches tight. Tells us what we’re not.

Not capable.

Not worthy.

Not prepared.

Not selfless.

Not smart.

Not creative.

Not. Good. Enough.

We resist the drag as if we can offset it.

But we’re weary. And losing.

I feel it. You feel it.

You know what else?

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The Part We Often Miss

Jesus loves busy people. Yes, you read that right. No matter how up-tight or snippy you’ve been today. How not-present you were yesterday. How defeated you feel. Jesus never stops loving you.

We think our behavior comes first. He says come anyway.

We think it’s up to us. The Finisher says, “Dear child, all’s been done.”

The striving, the trying, the vying. Not needed. There’s no prerequisite to grace that abounds from the heart of our Heavenly Father.

We earn nothing.

He gives everything.

We mess up.

He says, “I’ve missed you.”

We fall.

He catches.

And it’s a story of surrender and receiving not self-bettering and chin-upping. John 15:10 says it this way: “Follow My example in obeying the Father’s commandments and receiving His love” (The Voice). That’s the part we often miss. Following Jesus is as much about receiving His love as obeying His commands.

Maybe they’re inseparable. Two halves knit seamlessly, a gift from our great God.

The Plan Is the Overflow

He knows without action, faith grows stale. Says in-pouring needs an overflow.

Hold your cupped hands in reverent expectancy. He’ll tilt the pitcher, pour living water. And it will splash, sparking and alive, on your face. You’ll taste it through parted lips. It’ll reach your head, your toes, then gush on, like a holy, irrepressible roar.

That’s what I see when I look at you, wound up in your worry, keeping up a relentless pace, beating yourself up for not getting it together.

I want you to see it too. Because God’s not the size of post-it notes and crumbled to-do lists.

He’s generous and wild. Loves with reckless abandon. Gives us far more than we can hold in our two hands because that’s always been His plan.

Overflow.

He doesn’t just top us off when we’re drained. He pours out His abundant-enoughness until we’re standing in a river.

I love the phrasing of John 10:10 in The Passion Translation: “But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect—life in its fullness until you overflow!”

This is one I’ve carried close because it’s the foundation of missional living. We openly receive and readily release. Tuck in tight to the One we adore. Rest in His abounding grace. Then let it ripple out to those around us.

That’s why we can’t downplay the call to revel in Jesus’ love. Without being nourished, as Jesus Himself was, by the Father’s love, we have nothing to give.

Without being nourished, as Jesus Himself was, by the Father’s love, we have nothing to give (Twyla Franz quote).

Let’s read John 15:9-11 in The Passion Translation:

I love each of you with the same love that the Father loves me. You must continually let my love nourish your hearts. If you keep my commands, you will live in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands, and I am continually nourished and empowered by His love. My purpose for telling you these things is so that the joy I experience will fill your hearts with overflowing gladness.

They’re interlinked, obedience and love. Together they create a ripple effect of uncontainable joy.

A Better Way Than Better Yourself

Welcome to a world where it DOESN’T depend on you. Where your performance isn’t graded.

We’re not left to figure it out alone. Look back at John 15:10: “Follow My example in obeying the Father’s commandments and receiving His love” (The Voice). Jesus showed us how; we just follow His lead.

What does it look like in our practical, actual lives?

We spend time with Him. How it looks for you and me may be different, but whatever grows your awareness of how close God is, turn it into a rhythm.

Pursue Him, even when your thoughts are scattered or you missed yesterday. Seek Him as light slants through trees, with worship music saturating your commute, while prayer walking your neighborhood. Welcome Him into your living room when you’re alone with your face pressed to the floor or knitting hearts during a community gathering. Find Him in the loud, the quiet, and the spaces in-between. Draw your praise, pen your gratitude, read your Bible aloud. However you best love to spend time with Jesus, lean in.

Then walk it out. Tune in to the Voice that’s becoming dear and familiar. Say yes to His nudges.

Sometimes they’ll be so small you’ll wonder if they’re worth anything at all. But they matter. For you. To Him. And to the person who needs a reassuring smile or simply to feel seen.

Other times, they’ll cost more than a moment of time or your insecurity. But you don’t obey alone. He’ll walk right next to you. Equip you as you step into what He’s called you to do.

I’ll leave you with this: Jesus is more tender with you than you’ve been with yourself. Slow to listen. Pause to receive. He’s kind to overfill you so His great love splashes in healing and often practical ways on the people near you.

Let’s pray:

Jesus, we’re carried the weight of worry. Guilt for the nudges we’ve ignored. We’ve pushed ourselves hard and we’re tired. You teach us to come to You, often. Rest. Receive. You fill so we can overflow.

That’s where you’ll find me today—seeking You. Being nourished by Your love. Then, with my hand in Yours, I’ll step into what You say is next. You’re the source, and I’m simply the conduit. May Your love ripple through my life.

Just a friend over here in your corner,

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