“Let us remain as empty as possible so that God can fill us up.” – Mother Teresa

“Let us allow God to fill our hearts with his goodness and mercy.” – Pope Francis

One of the fond memories I have growing up in Marshfield, Wisconsin as a small child was stopping at the filling station.  As far as our family was concerned, the only place to go if the car needed gas or any kind of service was the Standard Oil Station located on the corner of Arnold and Central – right across the street from the old North Parkway grocery store.

Fred Schultz was the owner – a tall, physically imposing fellow whose lumbering gate revealed to everyone around him that he was no stranger to hard work.  When he spoke (in a broken Swedish/Norwegian accent) his kind voice and gentle manner instantly exposed his true character – a man our family counted on for many years.

In the mid-sixties, credit cards were scarcely seen or used.  Many times our family couldn’t afford the gas, but Mr. Schultz was more than happy to “put it on our tab” – knowing my folks were good for it.

When you pulled into his station, driveway alarm hoses were lined up perpendicular to the pumps – giving off a soft bell noise inside the station garage as you drove over them, letting the attendants know someone needed assistance at the pumps.

I’ll never forget Fred, his lumbering gate and big smile glowing as he headed toward our car to see what we needed.  My Mom or Dad would roll down the window and Fred would say, “Need a fill up?”

You see, back then, self-serve gas stations were yet to be invented.  “Paying at the pump” by swiping a card, filling up yourself, and taking off seemed like something out of a science fiction novel. After all, if you were stopping to get gas and didn’t get a chance to talk with Fred and catch up on how he was doing, I mean, how indifferent can a person get? 🙂

Once he knew we wanted the gas tank full, he proceeded to check our oil, wash our windows, and check the tires for proper inflation.  We just sat in the car as he busily worked to ensure our car was ready to go once the tank was full.

Here is the funny thing about it looking back:  If my Mom or Dad would have gotten out of the car to fill their own tank, wash their own windows, or lifted the hood to check their own oil, Fred would have felt hurt, as if he let us down somehow – not fulfilling his end of the deal as owner of the gas station.  He was there to serve us, not for us to do the job he was there to do.

I thought about Schultz’s Standard Oil Station the other day – thinking about how analogous it was to how I’ve been feeling lately from a spiritual perspective. 

My tank has been empty – in need of a fill.  In a self-serve kind of mentality, I’ve been trying to do it on my own, feeling like it’s my responsibility to act more like a good Christian should – falsely believing that in order to fill my spiritual tank it was up to me to make that happen.

Isn’t that exactly what we’re taught by our religion?  If your feeling lost, it’s probably because you aren’t praying enough, giving enough or serving enough…. Right?  If you’re lacking anything like strength to keep going, hope in the face of despair, or in need of healing that isn’t coming, well you must be doing something wrong. 

But how can you behave, act, and think like a good little Christian should when there’s nothing left in the tank?  How does “self-service” work in those situations? 

How can you try to be more faithful when there’s no faith in the tank?  How can you be more hopeful, more inspiring, or more determined when inside you feel like your empty – running on nothing but fumes?

As I thought about Fred and his filling station, I thought about a loving God ready and capable of filling our spiritual tank if we simply pull up to the pump and let Him do His work 🙂

When we’re empty, He’s wants to serve us – to fill us up again!  It requires nothing on our part – just like sitting in the car and watching Fred do all the work for us.

Just as Fred would be insulted and hurt if we got out of our car and tried to do it ourselves, God wants us to let Him do the work!  After all, hasn’t He done all the work for us already?

Just like the Schultz Standard Oil Station, God has an ample supply of any kind of fuel we need.

“And my God will liberally supply (fill until full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:19 Amplified Bible

If you’re sick, and in a “self-service” kind of way have been going from doctor to doctor trying to find answers, trying to find the right medicines, and desperate to cure yourself, stop and ask God to fill your tank with a healing power only He can provide.

You see, like Fred looking under the hood, checking the tires, and topping off the fluids, God is the expert when it comes to our health and well-being.  The Giver and Sustainer of life knows exactly what we need if we simply go to him to fill us up with health and strength again.

If your tank has no hope left, He can fill it up until it overflows.  If the finances are drained, the Creator of wealth can provide you with more sustenance than you will ever need.  If you’ve lost someone, He can fill your tank with comfort and assurance – giving you the peace you long for.  If you’re seeking wisdom, He has unending reservoirs of it – ready to supply it if you simply ask to be filled up.

But here is the problem.  We’re too busy.  We like the “hurry-up, self-serve, and get out fast” refueling remedy.

You see, getting refueled by Fred was a 10–15-minute experience.  To let him fill up your tank and go through the service checklist took time.  To catch up on how he was doing, to fill him in on what you were up to – those conversations didn’t happen with any contempt.  They were sincere and meaningful to both Fred and our family.

It’s the same way when God asks us, “Do you need a fill up?”, we need to spend the necessary time with Him, sharing our concerns, letting Him do His work in us.  We just need to rest in His presence (like we sat in the backseat watching Fred) as He fills us up with more hope, more grace, more forgiveness.  We need to simply take the time to go before Him each day – asking Him to fill us up with the specific kind of fuel we need in our life at the moment.  It will be time well spent!

“For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, And He has filled the hungry soul with what is good.” – Psalm 107:9 NASB

“You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” – Psalm 145:16 NIV

And one last thing…. when we fill (or attempt to fill) our own tank, we generally in a hurried fashion only put in the bare minimum we need to make it just a little while longer down the road.  When we go to God, He overfills our tank!

Why?

Because when He fills us up with grace, He wants that grace to flow out of us to others.  When He fuels our mistakes with forgiveness, He wants it to overflow – making it easier for us forgive.  When He fills our tank with prosperity, He wants us to help other become more prosperous.  When we have no more hope, He fills us with more than enough so we can be an inspiration to others 🙂

I hope you remember today that if you’re feeling empty and have nothing left in the tank to give – it’s not your fault.  In fact, stop trying to refuel on your own.

God wants you to come to Him. He wants to fill your tank with anything you need.  It just means taking the time to talk with him, resting in His care as He fills you back up again.  He is the expert – the one who has an ample supply of all we find lacking in ourselves.

So, pull into God’s filling station – right up to the pumps!  When you see God coming out to meet you, when He asks, “Need a fill up?”, I hope you share with him what you need in your tank to fill you up again.  Just simply rest as He does His work in you, and trust that when He is finished, He will overfill your tank, so you have an abundance to share with those around you 🙂

God bless!