I am blogging for Lent. Pouring in not taking out by sending excerpts from my new book,
THE TOV HEART: God's Design for a Life Rooted in What Matters Most
If you are intrigued, you can order it from Amazon here THE TOV HEART
Whether you get your own copy of the book or not, it is my hope and prayer that you will be blessed and challenged to look for more with God - Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit. No matter how much you think you have, there is always MORE! Godspeed!
“If then you are wise, you will show yourself rather as a reservoir than as a canal. For a canal spreads abroad water as it receives it, but a reservoir waits until it is filled before overflowing, and thus communicates, without loss to itself, its superabundant water. In the Church at the present day, we have many canals, few reservoirs.” – Bernard of Clairvaux[i]
The abundance of God is always on display. If we are willing to look down, it shows itself in every blade of grass, every flower, animal, and insect. If we look up, it is on display in the clouds, birds in flight, the moon, and the stars. God’s abundance can be found in every person, in every painting and song, in every smile, and in every tear.
If we will look, we also find the abundance of God within us. The leap of the heart when we see our children or grandchildren. The anticipation of time spent with someone we love. The weight of the glory we experience in the face of death, pain, or trauma. And the peace that transcends all understanding.[ii]
God pours his abundance into our hearts so that we can live the life Jesus intends us to live. His abundance creates tov and fills our hearts to overflowing and creates an environment within us where life can flourish. And not only within us but, in the overflow of his abundance, environments that flourish for those around us.
We cannot create abundance, and we cannot give away what we don’t have. And, we cannot manufacture the overflow of abundance. Everything we do on behalf of others must flow from the supernatural abundance of what we allow God to pour into us. If not, we and those around us will quickly dry out to a crackling crunch.
[i] Bernard of Clairvaux. AZQuotes.com, Wind and Fly LTD, 2024. https://www.azquotes.com/quote/649841, accessed October 29, 2024.
[ii] Philippians 4:7
Copyright © 2025 Ray Schmidt
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