Holy Spirit

How Can Empty Be Good?

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ Leave a comment

“Very early that Sunday morning, the women made their way to the tomb, carrying the spices they had prepared. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Jesus’ mother Mary. Arriving at the tomb they discovered that the huge stone covering the entrance had been rolled aside, so they went in to look.
But the tomb was empty. The body of Jesus was gone!”
Luke 24:1-3 TPT

The Tomb was empty

Dictionary.com defines “EMPTY” as:

  • containing nothing
  • having none of the usual or appropriate content
  • vacant
  • unoccupied
  • deprived of contents, to discharge
  • without knowledge or sense; frivolous; foolish
  • without force, effect, or significance; hollow; meaningless
  • without knowledge or sense; frivolous; foolish

Synonyms for empty: dry, vacant, uninhabited, unfilled, unoccupied, hollow, deserted, devoid, desolate, bare, blank, barren, flat, worthless, meaningless, idle

So how can empty be a good thing?

A search of the Dictionary of Bible Themes regarding “Empty” or “Emptiness” returned the following:

“Scripture stresses the emptiness of human life without God, and notes that Jesus Christ chose to empty Himself in order to redeem humanity.

Human life can be empty Ruth 1:21; Ecclesiastes 1:2; 3:19; Ecclesiastes 12:8

Human attempts at fulfillment are empty

  • Work does not satisfy Isaiah 55:2 Psalms 127:1-2; Ecclesiastes 2:17; Ecclesiastes 6:7; Haggai 1:5-6
  • Pleasure does not last Job 20:5; Proverbs 21:17; Ecclesiastes 2:1-3, 25
  • Wealth does not satisfy Ecclesiastes 5:10; Ecclesiastes 4:7-8; Luke 12:15; 1Timothy 6:9-10
  • Material possessions are unreliable Luke 12:18-20; Job 8:13-15; Job 15:31; Psalms 49:10,12,16-17; Proverbs 11:4; Ecclesiastes 5:15; 1 Timothy 6:7
  • False religion cannot save Isaiah 57:13; Judges 10:14; Isaiah 44:17-18; Isaiah 45:20; Isaiah 46:7; Jermiah 11:12; Acts 14:15”

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Oranges Make Orange Juice

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ Leave a comment

“For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” Matthew 12:34

“A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.”
Matthew 12:35

“But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.” Matthew 15:18

What do those verses have to do with Orange Juice? Let’s take a step back. If you were to take a whole, unpeeled orange and squeeze it with all your strength, what would the result be? Right… the result would be orange juice; it wouldn’t be tomato juice or apple juice. Because an orange, or any fruit for that matter, can only give up what it contains on the inside.

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Fervent Prayer

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ Leave a comment

Fervent: A Woman's Battle Plan to Serious, Specific and Strategic PrayerFervent: A Woman’s Battle Plan to Serious, Specific and Strategic Prayer by Priscilla Shirer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“You have an enemy . . . and he’s dead set on destroying all you hold dear and keeping you from experiencing abundant life in Christ. What’s more, his approach to disrupting your life and discrediting your faith isn’t general or generic, not a one-size-fits-all. It’s specific. Personalized. Targeted.

So this book is your chance to strike back. With prayer. With a weapon that really works. Each chapter will guide you in crafting prayer strategies that hit the enemy where it hurts, letting him know you’re on to him and that you won’t back down. Because with every new strategy you build, you’re turning the fiercest battles of life into precise strikes against him and his handiwork, each one infused with the power of God’s Spirit.”
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