{"id":3267,"date":"2023-06-02T03:42:25","date_gmt":"2023-06-02T11:42:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/breathingspace\/?p=3267"},"modified":"2023-05-19T19:04:13","modified_gmt":"2023-05-20T03:04:13","slug":"when-is-feeling-empty-a-good-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/breathingspace\/2023\/06\/when-is-feeling-empty-a-good-thing\/","title":{"rendered":"When is Feeling Empty a Good Thing?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Usually, feeling empty is bad\u2014like a hungry stomach or a heart vacant of love.\u00a0 But when is feeling empty a good thing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"<yoastmark<\/a><\/p>\n

The Potter\u2019s Purpose<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sometimes, it\u2019s good to be empty.<\/strong> Jeremiah\u2019s passage about the potter illustrates this concept well. Jeremiah 18:1-6<\/span><\/a> says:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying, \u201cArise, and go down to the potter\u2019s house, and there I will cause you to hear my words.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Then I went down to the potter\u2019s house, and behold, he was making something on the wheels. When the vessel that he made of the clay was marred in the hand of the potter, he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.<\/em><\/p>\n

Then Yahweh\u2019s word came to me, saying, \u201cHouse of Israel, can\u2019t I do with you as this potter?\u201d says Yahweh. \u201cBehold, as the clay in the potter\u2019s hand, so are you in my hand, house of Israel.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Romans 9:19-20<\/a><\/span> says that a vessel\u2019s usefulness depends on its willingness to fulfill the maker\u2019s purpose.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

You will say then to me, \u201cWhy does he still find fault? For who withstands his will?\u201d 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed ask him who formed it, \u201cWhy did you make me like this?<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Virtue of Emptiness<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In both ancient Greek<\/span><\/a> and Chinese<\/a> <\/span>philosophies, the virtue of a thing is found when it is used for its purpose. <\/strong>\u00a0The virtue of a chair is sitting.\u00a0 The virtue of a lamp is shining.\u00a0 A pot\u2019s virtue, or usefulness, is found in its emptiness.\u00a0 You can\u2019t use a pot very well if it\u2019s already full.\u00a0 The Tao Te Ching<\/a><\/span> says, \u201cIt is easier to carry an empty cup than one that is filled to the brim.\u201d In the same way, the usefulness of God\u2019s people is in their emptiness, their willingness to be a vessel that God can fill.<\/p>\n

There is a lot of value to be found in emptiness.<\/strong>\u00a0 I\u2019m reminded of the life of Joseph<\/a><\/span>, in the Hebrew Scriptures. The pivotal moments of his life took place when he was in the empty well, and when he was in the depths of his prison. Both of these represented emptiness in Joseph\u2019s own life. It\u2019s in those times when we feel empty that we often discover our purpose.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Value of Open Places<\/h2>\n

A window or doorway contains both substance and space.\u00a0 The frame is substance and the space within is emptiness.\u00a0 While both are necessary to make a door, it is the empty quality of space: openness and vacuity that make the door what it is.\u00a0 The virtue of a doorway is in passing through.\u00a0 Only when the door is open can it possess and employ its virtue.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Temple in Jerusalem was filled with people, filled with activity, yet it was the emptiness at the center of the sanctuary, the Holy of Holies<\/a><\/span>, that gave the Temple its meaning. It was only in this emptiness, this quiet place, that God would meet with the High Priest. In the life of a person like Joseph (or yourself), you need those moments when you can be open.<\/strong> Open\u2014like a door for the Spirit to pass through. Empty\u2014like the Holy of Holies, where you can meet with God.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

When is Feeling Empty a Good Thing?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s a good thing to fee empty when it means there\u2019s breathing space inside your heart.<\/b> In Matthew 6:6<\/a>,<\/span> Jesus says,<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The word \u201croom\u201d has been translated also as \u201ccloset,\u201d but I prefer the term \u201cinner chamber.\u201d Rather than a place where things are stored, it refers to the room where a host would receive guests who were more like family. In the house where I grew up, we had the formal living room but we also had the comfortable den. Only the most cherished friends gain admittance to our messy place. This \u201cinner chamber \u201d is where we meet with God.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And, of course, Jesus is really talking about the messy inner chamber of your heart.<\/strong> Only when your inner chamber is open to the Way, the Truth, and the Life, can you find your virtue, your purpose, and your flow.\u00a0 I pray that you\u2019ll find that the open and empty spaces in your life are worth exploring.\u00a0 I pray that your heart will remain open and receptive to what God wants to put there.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Usually, feeling empty is bad\u2014like a hungry stomach or a heart vacant of love.\u00a0 But when is feeling empty a good thing? The Potter\u2019s Purpose Sometimes, it\u2019s good to be empty. Jeremiah\u2019s passage about the potter illustrates this concept well. Jeremiah 18:1-6 says: \u00a0 The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying, \u201cArise, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4628,"featured_media":3270,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[2355,2352,2358,2361,2346,2349],"class_list":["post-3267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spirituality","tag-go-into-your-closet-to-pray","tag-holy-of-holies","tag-jeremiah-and-the-potter","tag-joseph-in-genesis","tag-tao-te-ching","tag-virtue-of-emptiness"],"yoast_head":"\nWhen is Feeling Empty a Good Thing?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Usually, feeling empty is bad\u2014like a hungry stomach or a heart vacant of love.\u00a0 But when is feeling empty a good thing?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/breathingspace\/2023\/06\/when-is-feeling-empty-a-good-thing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"When is Feeling Empty a Good Thing?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Usually, feeling empty is bad\u2014like a hungry stomach or a heart vacant of love.\u00a0 But when is feeling empty a good thing?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/breathingspace\/2023\/06\/when-is-feeling-empty-a-good-thing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Breathing Space\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/revgregsmith\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-06-02T11:42:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-05-20T03:04:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/1467\/2023\/05\/pottery-gf86c25f4d_1280.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"780\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"415\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gregory T. 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