Don't Squeeze the Middle

 

M

om, we’re out of toothpaste again.  This was a regular occurrence at our house early in the morning as we were getting ready for school.  After breakfast, I went to the bathroom to wash my face, comb my hair, and brush my teeth.  I opened the drawer, removed my toothbrush and the toothpaste, and, just like every kid in school, I squeezed that tube right in the middle.  For a while, I was successful in getting the paste out of the tube.  However, when the two sides of the tube met and no paste came out, I called mom to inform her that we were completely out of toothpaste. 

 

Every time this happened, mom would come into the bathroom, squeeze the tube, and magically she would succeed in milking the toothpaste from it. I am thoroughly convinced there was a secret compartment inside that only she knew about!!  Mom always started at the bottom of the tube and moved the paste forward and she encouraged me to do the same.  The word encourage is really too tame for how she explained the mechanics of removing toothpaste from the tube.  What she really did was tell me over and over again that it would be easier to get more paste from the tube if I started at the bottom.  The paste at the end of the tube was the deepest and if I began in the deep end, the rest would just come out.

 

Somehow, though, all her coaxing and repeated instructions just never seemed to sink in.  It was work to force the paste out of the bottom of the tube and squeezing the middle was a lot more fun.  While I was able to get some paste from the tube, I left so much more inside because I was unwilling to work harder to remove all the paste buried deep in that tube.  Even when mom bought little plastic keys that fit on the end of the tube to help me get all the paste out, I still insisted on squeezing the tube in the middle.  Only later in life did I realize that squeezing in the middle meant I was only getting half of the paste out.  The rest was still in there and forcing it out after having flattened the tube required more work than if I had done it correctly to begin with.  If I had only listened to mom!  But that’s usually the way it goes, isn’t it? We always know better! 

 

Far too often in our relationship with God we are content to simply squeeze the tube in the middle.  We open God’s word and search for a quick verse to make us feel better, we say a quick prayer, spending very little time with our Heavenly Father, and far too often we feel that our relationship is depleted and empty when in reality there is so much more for us to receive and experience.  We leave far too much in the tube because we don’t want to exert the effort necessary to have a deeper and more meaningful relationship with God.   

 

We quote the scripture that says God rewards those who seek after Him diligently (Hebrews 11:6) and claim it for our own.  Yet, when it comes to actually seeking after Him diligently, deliberately, and faithfully, we fall woefully short of the mark.  We are content to squeeze the middle, taking what we can get out of a few minutes of prayer or devotion, content with our feeble efforts, believing the relationship is spent when in fact there is so much more.  How much more of God we could have if we would just determine to go deeper. 

 

The writer of Psalm 107 encourages us to do just that.  This entire Psalm is one of thanksgiving, of praising God for His wonderful love that endures forever and protects us in all circumstances of life.  In Psalm 107:24, the psalmist writes a most interesting passage, “They saw the works of the LORD , his wonderful deeds in the deep.”  The beginning of this section of Psalm 107 speaks of those who used the sea to ply their trade as merchants.  These men encountered all the wonder and fear of storms at sea.  They knew what it was to rise high on tumultuous waves only to be plummeted to the depths as the waves crashed over their vessels.  Yet, the psalmist tells us that God’s unfailing love protected them. He calmed the seas and the storms and guided them safely into port.  No wonder the psalmist tells us these men fully understood God’s love.  They experienced it in the depths, out in the water, in the face of the storm, where no one save God alone could come to their rescue and provide comfort and peace. 

 

Oh my friend, have you ever been there?  Have you ever been out in the deep with God, to see His hands, to feel His arms, and to see His protection in the difficult areas of life?  Are you pursuing Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength?  Are you pushing deep into His word, understanding the depths of His love, and seeking the unfathomable riches of His blessings to all those who call upon His name?  I pray that you are.  I pray that you are launching out into the deep, relying on Him as your only means of provision and strength.   

This type of relationship is the type God means for us to have with Him.  It is only in the depths of the sea and in the middle of the storm that we can fully appreciate His love for us.  It is only when we have no strength that we fully experience His power.  It is only when we determine to live the deeper life that we experience the fullness of God.  So why are you still squeezing that tube in the middle?  Go for the bottom, squeezing until you get the full measure of all that God has and wants to give you today!