I received this very refreshing e-mail from a friend of mine that receives letters from a gentleman by the name of John Fenn that refreshed me and helped me gain some focus in some areas where I struggle and wrestle with.

Hi all,
This week I’d like to share about how to stay filled up in the Spirit and in peace during this (or any other) busy season!

In Zechariah 4, Zechariah saw a vision of 2 olive trees, a big bowl between them, then channels from the bowl leading to 7 burning lamps. The summary of this vision is verse 6: “Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord.”

The Lord is giving him a vision of how to stay ‘tanked up’ in the midst of situations that you want to step out in the flesh and just do the job yourself, or when other people or circumstances aren’t wanting to cooperate with your schedule! (or what you feel God’s schedule is for them or that task before you)

Historically, the context of Zechariah is that he and Haggai were urging the (reluctant) people to rebuild the temple…you may remember that Haggai (in the book right before Zechariah) told them their priorities were all mixed up. The Lord asked the people through Haggai in 1: 1-11 to take notice that they all lived in luxurious houses while the temple lay in ruins. The Lord told them to set their priorities right and finish the temple first, then they would be blessed in all they set their hands to.

Zechariah sees his vision of the trees, bowl, and lampstand within the same time frame. We can imagine that Zechariah was impatient with the people, because his heart had the right priorities and wanted to see God’s plan for the temple fulfilled, but the people were busy attending to their own lives and homes and busy schedules.

It seems the Lord is telling Zechariah to cool his jets and let the Lord move the people and project along at His pace. You see, the olive trees are the source of the olive oil. That oil fills the large bowl Zechariah sees. From that (overflowing) bowl, the oil flows down channels to the lampstand.

As the bowl overflows with oil, the oil flows to the lamps, and the lamps are able to burn. The lesson is that you and I are to feed the lamps out of the overflow of oil (the Holy Spirit) within us. We are never to give the people (or circumstances) what is in the bowl–that is for your consumption–you give them the overflow (only).

You and I can feel when we start giving to life out of the bowl rather than out of the overflow. Like a dimmer switch slowly turning down the light, the flow slowly retreats, allowing first the emotional level to drain, then the spiritual level to withdraw, even drawn down to the point of feeling like a reservoir in drought…hardly anything left in it!

Last fall I was driving through western Kansas, heading east as the sun was setting behind me. The sun, wind, dust and light were such that I could literally see the darkness approaching as the sun was setting. I was so amazed I said to myself out loud, “Look how the darkness is advancing!” Immediately the Father spoke to me: “It’s not that the darkness is advancing, it’s that the light is retreating.” That’s what happens when we unhook from the Source of the oil…it’s not that Satan and darkness advance against us, it’s more that our light and oil is retreating, being used up like the last bit of light on a fall day.

The Lord was telling Zechariah that He knew the temple needed work, but his job was to stay filled up with God’s Spirit, and from that the work would be done. You see, unless we stay hooked up to the Source of the Oil, the Holy Spirit, our bowls will stop overflowing, then eventually the burning lamps run low, then out of fuel, and they extinguish.

Give people and circumstances JUST the overflow…yes the project needs completed, but the pace of the job is best done when you are ‘tanked up’ with your bowl filled and not only filled, but overflowing.

How do you do this? One of the keys is to pray in the Spirit. In I Cor 14:21 Paul quotes a portion from Isaiah that he says is talking about praying in tongues. The passage Paul quotes is Isaiah 28:11-12, that goes on to say; “…this is the resting place, let the weary rest, this is the place of repose…” One of the primary purposes of praying in the Spirit is to give rest and peace to us!

For those of you reading this that are baptized in the Spirit and speak in tongues, praying in the Spirit will bring rest and refreshing…a reconnecting to the source of the Oil.

Over the years I’ve found that if I lay down for 10 minutes and pray in the Spirit softly it’s about the same as a 2 hour nap. Another way of recharging is to get caught up in worship. However you find the greatest rest in worship, put yourself in that position…driving in the car, in the bath, walking…find the place of worship that recharges you the most.

Either way, it’s a discipline. For years I’ve had the habit of immediately praying in the Spirit lightly the moment I wake up, usually for about 10 minutes, sometimes as long as 45 minutes. But this past week or two I’ve noticed that with everything going on, instead of praying my mind has wandered to other things right away, and I’ve found myself having to get back into that habit. That’s really the source of the thoughts this week…my own efforts to renew a discipline I’ve had for years, but fell out of in the last couple weeks. This morning I woke up a bit before 5am and prayed in the Spirit for over an hour…that’s how long it took before I felt charged up again!

Barb and I have some friends who were in Bible school when we were (1979-80). They had 4 kids and I remember Jeanne sharing with Barb way back then that the Lord told her she had to pray in the Spirit 30 minutes each day (at the start) just to cover their young family for the day.

You can feel when your ‘bowl’ starts to fill again…often it’s a combination of things that allows that refilling…a mental break from the action, a physical rest and change of focus, and a spiritual discipline to worship and/or pray/study.

Are you like Zechariah right now, with all sorts of things to be done? Yo u can either force your way through them, bullying people and circumstances and getting the job done in the flesh…or you can work that work with a flow from your spirit, a flow from the overflow which easily lights all 7 lamps…all your various projects.

So like Zechariah, calm down, set your priorities, get alone with the Lord enough and to the extent that you can feel that bowl fill up…then, and only then, set out on your tasks! You will find they will be accomplished “not by (your) might, not by (your) power, but by my Spirit says the Lord.”

Many blessings,
John Fenn
cwowi.org