Too often, I catch myself being a bucket, but God calls me to be a sieve. How about you? O.K., so you are probably wondering to what on earth am I referring. Answer is found in Christ’s own words. “Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” John 7:38 (ESV)
A bucket is a vessel used for holding H2O. Content within a bucket is intended not to escape. A sieve is a vessel through which water flows. Content poured into a sieve cannot be contained.
We, Christians, are called to be God’s vessel. Through us is meant to flow God’s love. We are to be a stream bringing God’s existence and promises to those who know Him not. Think about it. Aren’t we called by our Heavenly Father to be His sieve and not a worldly bucket?
Shamefully, I own up to moments when I’m more a bucket than a sieve. It’s easier to hoard God’s blessings than to let them flow through me, so they can be shared with others — many of whom are strangers to me. To my personal family, I would never not give everything and be a sieve. Then there are the instances when lack of physical energy, enthusiasm and time cause me to delay giving anything to others outside of my family; and I, in reality, become a bucket. However, praise God that through His enlightenment and grace, today brings hope that tomorrow I can change from being a bucket to a sieve.
There is a calculated limit to the worldly water a bucket can hold. There is no limit to how much of God’s life-giving water can flow through a sieve. The only uncertainty is will I (we) allow the world to turn me (us) into a finite bucket; or will I (we) answer God’s call and allow Him to use me (us) as His infinite sieve?
Uplifted in a Broken Down World 