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LIVING SEED GLEANINGS

MADE FOR A PURPOSE – Gbile Akanni

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 LESSON ONE

Are You Standing?

“And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there:
And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the
mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I
to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he
saith unto you, do it. And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the
purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the
waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out
now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had
tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which
drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto him,
Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then
that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.” (John 2:1-10 KJV)

I see the Holy Spirit pointing to several issues from this portion from the word of life. The first,
being that of the standing of the water pots, vis-à-vis my standing.

“And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews,
containing two or three firkins apiece.” Verse 6

They are standing there available for use.

Their availability was because they were standing. Standing as they were set. They were not lying
there else they would never have found usefulness in such position. He who set them there set
them standing. Standing there for a divine purpose.

Though such divine use tarries yet they were standing there. Oh what an issue for my heart to
ponder on! Am I still standing were the death and resurrection of Jesus, and His finished work on
the cross at Calvary set me? And there were set there six water pots…

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They were water pots of stone, carved and crafted for a divine use before that time. They had
been used for ritual feet washing before now when men sought for sanctification, but has now
become abandoned. Yet they kept standing there as they were set. Though presently abandoned,
yet remain they water pots of stone. They refused to be converted for other use than that for
which they were carved and crafted for – water pots.

They were made of stone by their maker and not of clay, hence men could not easily break them;
they could only have been used for alternative purposes if they subscribe to such. And it seemed
they did not. Oh, what a challenge here for me! They seemed to have waited for a time when
they will be found useful in the hand of the Lord.

Each was a container of several gallons. Though six in number, showing they were in a team,
however, they could yet be identified by the capacity to which each was carved. This pointed to
the volume of grace they had obtained to withhold the thirst in the hearts of men.

None hid under the grace of another to remain shallow, but have individually yielded to the hands
of the Master in other to have sufficient to supply in the day of need. Hence, each was a container
of several gallons. This is so challenging to my heart in such a day as this that we are in.

O Lord, here is my cry unto you. I am here and available for you to fill me for thy use among thy
Church in these days of need. When the wine has finished and men are now serving that which
is worse, O Lord, find me a vessel in your hand to bring back the new wine unto thy people. A
container with a capacity deep enough to hold that which can serve the thirst of your people. Let
me not raise the hope of the Church only to run out before their thirst is taken care of.

Your divine purpose is what your grace has kept me “standing” all this while, for to serve. May I
not surrender the Lord’s labor in carving and crafting me for divine purpose unto alternative use
in Jesus name. Amen.

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 LESSON TWO
Empty . . . and Emptied!
“And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews,
containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And
they filled them up to the brim.” (Joh 2:6-7 KJV)

The water jars were empty. This is why the Lord commanded that they be filled with water. It is
only the empty and emptied vessel that can be filled. A full man cannot be filled. A man full of
himself, of his own knowledge and of ambition for this world cannot be filled. A man full of
bitterness and anger cannot be filled. The condition that made these jars useful was their
emptiness. They became empty.

“Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying,
Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the
creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. And Elisha said unto her, What
shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath
not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of
all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. And when thou art come in, thou
shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and
thou shalt set aside that which is full. So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and
upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out. And it came to pass, when
the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her,
There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.” (2Ki 4:1-6 KJV)

Whatever was using them before now, they were emptied of all such: self, Satan and the world.
They were no longer available for ceremonial feet washing by men. Such ignoble use was not
what they were carved, crafted and set there for. Men who were not ready for true consecration
could no longer have access to them because they have been emptied. Emptied and made ready
for the real purpose that their maker has in mind for them at creation.

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Jesus emptied Himself of all His own glory in order to become a vessel for our salvation. This
leaves me with an example of what to seek for, as I hope to be used of God. I must be emptied
so as to be filled with something divine which is necessary for my use by God. I must stay clear of
all that seeks or will seek to fill me, for that will make me unavailable to be filled with the life of
Christ by God.

The Lord commanded that the waterpots of stone be filled because they were empty. It was not
that day that they were emptied. It is not in the day of my divine usage that I will seek to be
emptied. Such crashed program does not allow the oil of anointing to flow upon a man’s head.
This is where David’s brothers missed it. Outward sanctification of washing clothes even for three
days is not sufficient to empty a man’s heart in readiness for the infilling of the Holy Spirit for the
Lord’s choice vessel. The Lord looks not at the face but the heart, and that is where I need to
empty and be emptied.

Lord, this again is the yearning of my heart. Purge me and empty me of all things until I am free
to be filled afresh with Thy Spirit. I must not even be filled with my past experience in ministry. I
must not fill my heart with anything stale. I want to be fresh in your hand O Lord. Fill me anew.
Fill me with the fresh water from the stream. Flush me out and cleanse me thoroughly till I am fit
to bear the water of life unto my generation. Amen.

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 LESSON THREE
Filled To the Brim
“Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.”
(John 2:7 KJV)

This is the third thing that made these water jars useful. Fill the waterpots with water was your
command to the servants. The water pots were filled to the brim.

For me to be a blessing to my generation, I must be filled to the brim. To empty and be emptied
is but a means to an end. If I am emptied and I’m not quickly filled to the brim, then I would only
have set myself for the worst case in life.

“When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds
none. Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds
it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more
wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse
than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.” (Mat 12:43-45 NKJV)

I must be filled with the water of life. The springs of living water must be poured into me until I
am filled to the brim. No space must be left out of the capacity of my life. These were waterpots,
so the Lord says they should be filled with water. I must be filled with that which my maker made
me for.

If it is Him, He would not have me misapplied. Others seek for misappropriation of my life, to use
me for alternate purposes; but He would not. He knows His thoughts and plans towards me.
Though I was hijacked and made to carry the human nature from birth, His salvation has bought
and brought me back to the right path. I must now be filled to the brim with the life that is light,
which Darkness cannot comprehend.

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Fill me to overflowing. Your labor over my life must bring a filling to the brim. To be filled but not
to the brim would be short of your command and plan for my life. I must never be in haste to go
out when I am not filled to the brim.

“And all thy estimations shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs shall
be the shekel.” (Lev. 27: 25 KJV).

Gerahs is never equated to a shekel. This falls below the standard estimation of the sanctuary.
He who commands my filling has a standard. He will not accept anything less. The brim of my
vessel is His sanctuary standard for my infilling. Those you have commanded to fill me knows that
they are to do whatever you asked them to do, but may I not hinder them as they carry out your
biddings over my life.

This is the essence of your discipleship for my life under the hands which you have been please
to post me. They are to fill me to the brim with what you intended for me to be filled to the brim
with. This is the cry of my heart to you again this day. Fill me anew. Fill me afresh. Fill me to
overflowing. Fill me till I have no other empty vessel O Lord.

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 LESSON FOUR
Draw Out Now!
“And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they
bare it.” (Joh 2:8)

What a miracle! Draw out now and bear to the governor of the feast. Once I am filled to the brim
the next command over my life is to draw out. Draw out NOW! I wonder what was responsible
for this urgency from my Master. As if there should be no lapse of time between when I am filled
to the brim and when to draw out from me… Lord, your thoughts are truly not our thoughts and
your ways are truly not our ways. I would have loved for your life poured into me to the brim to
stay a while before it begins to be drawn out.

But you said, “Draw Out Now!” as if you are afraid of my becoming stale. You are so concern
about my life so much that you would not allow it to flaunt any of your principle of life. To you
all that are full are to be set aside, this is the reason why your command is: “Draw Out Now!” It
is only as they draw out from me that I can have space to be refilled, else I will become full and
meet only to be set aside. “Draw Out Now!” is your secret biding for my continuous flow, refilling
and freshness.

The jars have now become serving points where men could draw out from to meet a certain thirst
in the lives of men.

To be filled to the brim is not the end of the matter. Until I am being drawn out to meet the needs
in the house, I may remain full but stagnant. O Lord, this is the next cry of my heart to you today.
Draw me out and make me a blessing to my generation. Draw out of me of thine treasure which
you had earlier poured in there, so that men may drink also from this water pot and be refreshed
for their journey to eternity.

I desire to be a serving point where men’s needs in life are met. I do not seek for a one time use,
rather, I want to be a source where men can come again and again and they will always find
satisfaction to their thirst.

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Draw out from me such things that thy Spirit has deposited within me that my own generation
may not go hungry any more.

Your labour over Moses was for the deliverance of your people from their bondage under
Pharaoh in Egypt. You sponsored Esther so she can offset similar debt so that the creditor would
not make cheap merchandise of your people. It was for this purpose that you caused me to be
filled to the brim.

Help me, therefore, oh Lord, that I withhold not myself from this holy use. Draw out from me
such freshwater that thy Church might be served with that which is fresh and good rather than
the one that is worse and watery. I want to meet the need for which I was filled to the brim in
the first place. Therefore, draw out now from me dear Lord!

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 LESSON FIVE
The Secret Of Divine Usefulness
“And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they
bare it.” (Joh 2:8)

I still see a matter in this verse. You bade the servants ‘Draw out now’. Until you bid men draw
from this water pot, it remains ordinary water.

Lord, it is as you bid your men to draw from my life that my usefulness can be established. They
will not taste the wine unless you asked them to draw from this pot. I cannot tell men to draw
from me; it will be presumptuous and arrogant. I cannot introduce myself as having anything to
offer men. They have seen those pots before. They have seen their emptiness and what they
were used for before this time was ignoble. How will anyone come to draw from a pot that was
used to wash their feet before?

This bidding must come from you. It must come from your very mouth otherwise what you have
poured into me will be looked down upon as if it is the usual water to washing hands and feet.
No one drank from those pots before. They were used to wash hands and feet. If they must now
taste the fresh wine therein, it must have come as a bidding from the very throne of grace. Men
only rush to hear you because the Father bids them do so. While he was still speaking, behold, a
bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying,

“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” (Mat 17:5 NKJV)

The shape of the jars hadn’t changed in their eyes. But the content is now fresh. May I remain as
simple as you have made me. While others struggle with externalities may my inner man remain
a priority for me to feed and build. You are content that I remain an earthen vessel in thy hands
but with such inner power that makes it clear that it is you.

What baffles men about you was not your shape and size, it was what comes from within you
that makes men keep asking: “what manner of man is this?” Help me to maintain my ordinariness
before men that the excellency of the power flowing through me maybe yours.

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Lord, grant me this kind of fresh introduction to thy body. This is the secret behind all men whose
services and ministry was well acceptable to your Church. Those who tried to go before you were
queried with: “Who made you a prince and a judge over us?” and subsequently rejected.
However, they became acceptable after your divine introduction to your people.

May my drawing out bear this specific and particular command as to where and whom I am to
be borne to. Let the governors of the feast get to taste of this new wine first, so he can allow it
to be served to the entire house. Lord, I wait on you for this miracle in Jesus name.

“This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his
disciples believed on him.” (John 2:11)

This indeed shall be a beginning of miracles that will manifest your glory among men in this
generation. Lord, help me particularly in this matter in Jesus name.

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