At the grocery store checkout through a pack of gum?!
It’s amazing the ways God chooses to speak to His people. So yes, God did communicated a powerful truth through a pack of gum. And it’s not the 1st time He’s spoken to me in an unusual fashion. He’s spoken to me by vigorously waving tree branches on a still windless day. I’ve even heard His booming voice from heaven audibly call my name. And that happened while I was new in the faith so it was quite unnerving.
On my weekly trip to the grocery store, as I stood in the checkout line I glanced over at the gum, My eyes landed right on Mentos Pure Fresh. Mentos Pure Fresh Gum has three layers. A hard candy outer shell, a chewy, gummy layers then a cool liquid center. And you and I are like the Mentos gum. We are three layered persons. Our hard shell represents our outer most physical body, the gum layer being our mind, will and emotions and the center our spirit. To release the liquid center of the gum, we must get through two tough layers. And the same can be said for releasing our spirit. Let’s journey through the layers.
HARD SHELL
Oh how we long to satisfy the desires of the flesh.
When angry, we want to holler or play the power move of being passive aggressive.
When hurt or sad we may turn to food or other external sources for comfort.
That hard outer shell of the gum, the tough, rebellious outer layer of our person, the flesh, MUST crucify its longings to get to the next layer. That outer shell like the outer shell of an M&M can be cracked. Will we embrace being cracked? Do we see the value and benefit of being broken before God?
Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. John 12:24
CHEWY GUM
When the flesh and its longings have been bought under subjection, we can then reach the next layer of ourselves and that is our mind, will and emotions. And like chewing gum, they are malleable. Just like our teeth and tongue crush, squeeze, fold and turn gum, God takes our mind, will and emotions and turns and squeezes them so that are bought to the obedience of Christ.
Therefore do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16
While there are many well meaning, good intentions we may have, unless they are in alignment with the will of the Lord, they are for naught. It is not OUR will but HIS will that must be done.
LIQUID CENTER
Now I find there are three camps people fall into when eating layered candies like M&M’s and this gum. Some lick each layer. Some nibble each layer. And the last just bite through the whole thing. Whatever the strategy, each layer is enjoyed yet the center holds the promise, like getting to the center of a Tootsie Pop lollipop.
It behooves us to remain aware and sensitive so that we don’t miss Him. Now every time I SEE the Mentos gum, think about the Mentos gum, or even smell minty gum, I am reminded that Jesus is the center and I have to remain centered in Him.
In the case of the Mentos, the outer layer seems to hold the most intense flavor. The mint is strong and fills the nostrils. The mint is cool yet fiery. And when eating the gum, one wants that minty outer layer to last forever. And we can be like that, wanting to satisfy our desires forever. But do you not know there is even more intense flavor inside waiting to be released? For the liquid center inside the gum is even more intense, even more pungent. And the same can be said for your spirit. Your spirit man is capable of producing MORE fruit than your flesh ever could.
And this is the work of the Lord. Day by day He puts us in situations where we will be challenged to crack the hard outer shell of our bodily desires, where we will have to stretch and squeeze the longings of our will so that our spirit man will be released to flow freely and fly right in line with the Lord.
This is His desire for you. This is His desire for me, that we would be broken before Him so that our spirits can commune with Him and with other like-minded spirits to expedite the work of building the Kingdom here on earth. This is truly living. Doing the work that we were purposed and placed here for from the beginning of time.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The Words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:63
Last year I asked the Lord to move my relationship with Him from my head to my heart. My head knows plenty about the Lord; I have memorized His word, I have seen His work, I have heard and continue to hear Him speak. The first two layers of ME know plenty about Him. Oh but I desire more than just head knowledge about Him. I long to know Him intimately. I long to commune with Him. I pine for the opportunity to hang out with Him and learn from Him. So He simply beckoned me to “COME!” And when I walked toward Him, the desires of my first two layers, my body and my will HAD to fall away. To sit with Him and hear from Him required me to respond. And to respond appropriately, obediently required me to deny myself so that my spirit could receive and act accordingly.
In his book The Release Of The Spirit, Watchman Nee says, “Our spirit is released according to the degree of our brokenness. The one who has accepted the most discipline is the one who can best serve. The more one is broken, the more sensitive he can be.” He goes on to say it is, “Through the Spirit’s discipline, that the outer man is broken. And, through the Spirit’s revelation, the powers of the outer man are completely divided from the spirit.”
Therefore, through disciplining ourselves and by divine revelation of the Holy Spirit, our inner man, our spirit man is released and is FREE.
In what ways are you being broken?
Can you see blessing in brokenness?
As always, it is my prayer that you’ve been Inspired To Live Fully!
Happy to connect with these friends spreading the Good News Purposeful Faith
[…] Friends, I pray you do not allow yourselves to become dehydrated. Most often, when we realize we are thirsty, we are already nearing dehydration. If you’ve been encouraged to drink 64oz of water a day, how much of Jesus should you be drinking daily? In fact, if you are a believer, the water is in you. Just like reaching water in the desert, you may have to dig deep for it. Your body is composed of more than 60% water. So dig deep into yourself. Crucify your flesh and it’s longings to release the water (for more on releasing your spirit CLICK HERE). […]
To be broken in society comes with stigma and negativity, something to be looked down upon. But to be broken before the Lord is beautiful. (It’s just hard to remember that sometimes.)
Stopped over from #RaRaLinkup and enjoyed your post today. Blessings to you!
Laura,
But it’s that just like God to takes what the world views one way and turn it upside down (which is really right side up)?! Praising him that today we can celebrate and rejoice in our brokenness knowing that it sets or spirits free. Thanks for stopping by.
How awesome is that of you! To see a mentos gum and compare that to humans. Yes, you’re right. We all have our own layers. That’s what we’re made of.
Lux,
Indeed Lux he has layers to traverse to get to the inner man. And that the work of the Lord. His love for us is so immense, He is willing to mine through the layers so that we can be one with Him.
Tyra–thanks for this great message. I love the encouragement of letting ourselves be cracked open so we can begin to work on the more malleable parts of ourselves. I need to let God break through my tough outer layer and really dig into my heart. I might even by a pack of gum to help me remember all week!
Colleen looking at the gum in the checkout line will never be the same. Today I’m rejoicing being clay in the potter’s hands. Thanks for visiting.
Tyra, this is not just the best post that I’ve read all day, but in fact the most powerful message that I’ve had the pleasure of reading in a very long time. I believe that our hearts were in sync as we were writing this week as I too just want to continually go deeper in HIM. Your words have blessed me beyond measure and I am so grateful to know you! Thank you for sharing such a beautiful and powerful word today! Peace and many blessing to you, sweet friend! Love you! 🙂
Oh Tai your words mean so much to me. Your comment makes me think “To whom much is given, much is required”. The Lord is revealing himself because he needs us to DO SOMETHING with the revelation. What an incredibly heavy mantle to wear. But when I’ve got sisters like you helping me to don the mantle, it makes it easier to bear. I rejoice that our spirits are knit together as we rejoice, stand, and do battle in the spirit. What is loosed in heaven is loosed on earth. Heaven’s realities shall be made manifest here on earth. I believe we are bearing witness to that right here.
God is a master communicator, isn’t He? I love how He speaks to His children. He is so creative … so intentional. I really like the quote you used: “Our spirit is released according to the degree of our brokenness.” In my struggle with fibromyalgia and hypermobility, I am finding this to be true more and more each day. The more broken I am, the more my spirit is free to hand over all the reins to God.
The book by Watchman Nee is an excellent read. I recommend you read it. Nee was imprisioned in communist China for his faith and the writings birthed in his time of confinement are amazing.
Tyra- Don’t you love how He speaks to us in extraordinary ways through ordinary things? Thank you for adding this post to the #RaRaLinkup.
Katie,
We serve an awesome, wonder working God and His wonder never cease to amaze me. I marvel that in all that is going on in the universe, he makes time just for me! What a reason to rejoice!
I absolutely love this analogy, Tyra! God was definitely speaking to you through that pack of gum, my sweet friend. I must memorize this: “Your spirit man is capable of producing MORE fruit than your flesh ever could.” I know this, yet so often I act the opposite. Maybe that needs to be posted on my mirror :). Thank you for your always timely and much needed encouragement!
And the next time you are at the grocery checkout pick up a pack of that gum and keep it handy so you can be reminded of this truth. I’ve kept the container which has long since been emptied in my purse as I go in and out of that everyday. It compels me to thank him for the RELEASE of the spirit.
Day by day He puts us in situations where we will be challenged to crack the hard outer shell of our bodily desires,
Yes and Amen. He works all things for the good. Love your imagery! Stopping by from Reflect.
Jann,
You are right, day by day opportunities to be broken. I had a big one on Sunday when I went to drop my Boy Scout off for a week long overnight camp only to have them say he couldn’t go because I was missing a form. You talk about broken? My normal, stoic strong resolve crumbled. God had to step in and my spirit stretched outward. Thanks for stopping by.