Devotional: Chocolate Milk

Chocolate Milk

Do you know what you get when you pour chocolate into a glass of milk? If you said, "chocolate milk" you are wrong. Pouring chocolate into a glass of white milk will still just give you white milk... until you get a spoon and stir it up!

I love this illustration. It reminds me of "...this treasure in earthen vessels..." (2 Corinthians 4:7) every Believer has within them. It's there all the time, but it can get stuck like chocolate at the bottom of a glass unless we STIR it up! This life in Christ is amazing, but because we live in a body with feelings and we have a million things coming at us every minute of every day, we sometimes forget that which lies within. Paul understood this and therefore encouraged Timothy with these words: "I would remind you to stir up (rekindle the embers of, fan the flame of, and keep burning) the [gracious] gift of God, [the inner fire] that is in you..." (2 Timothy 1:6, Amplified).

God has given us the Holy Spirit as a Comforter, a Counselor, an Intercessor, an Advocate, a Strengthener, and a Stand-By. These are His "nick-names" and descriptions of His responsibilities to all believers. But did you notice the last one? Stand-By. This name indicates He is always in the wings waiting for us to call upon Him. The problem is we forget. We look to others for comfort and counsel. We join intercessory prayer groups. We lean on other people to fight our battles for us or worse of all, we fight them in our own strength. Don't get me wrong, I have some trusted, godly friends I rely upon daily. As the scriptures say, "As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend" (Proverbs 27:17). But too often, we look to others far more than we should.

I looked up this word "stir" in the dictionary. I had a pretty good idea of what it meant, but I like to study words and their meanings to expand my thinking (outside of the box). The obvious meaning of the word stir is to move one's hand or tool continuously or repeatedly through a liquid or other substance to agitate or mix. It can also mean to set in irregular motion, like a breeze stirring the leaves, or it can refer to something that affects us strongly in our emotions.

So, in my example of chocolate milk, without a tool to agitate or mix the chocolate with my milk, I've still just got white milk (yuck). But if I get a spoon and stir it good, I've got a refreshing drink (yum). This is how it is with us spiritually. The Holy Spirit waits in Stand-By mode until called upon. Just like the deposits of God's Word in our heart, they will do us little good if we never stir ourselves up in remembrance. My office staff laughs at me when I get on a soapbox about the things of God, stirring up myself and them about His precious promises. They'll just look at one anther and say, "Chocolate Milk!"

I knew Paul's words to Timothy about reminding him to stir himself up. But I recently discovered that this was said more than once in the scriptures. Peter said in his second letter, "For this reason, I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease" (2 Peter 1: 12-15). Basically, Peter was saying he understood his responsibility to always remind them of the truth, even if it was a repeat of things they already knew! He even promised to pass this responsibility on to others after he was gone. I read his words and I thought to myself "chocolate milk!"

Remember, to stir can mean to set in irregular motion or to affect strong emotion in someone. That definition becomes humorous when you read Paul's words to the Romans. He said, "But now I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I lay great stress on my ministry and magnify my office, in the hope of making my fellow Jews jealous [in order to stir them up to imitate and copy me], and thus managing to save some of them" (Romans 11:13-14, Amplified). In other words, "If I have to make them mad, so be it!" Paul saw that it might provoke his brethren to stir them up, but if it got them saved while doing it, then that would be a good thing! Sometimes, you've got to fight fire with fire. Paul told the Philippians, "Some people tell the message about Christ because of their jealousy and envy. Others tell the message about Him because of their good will. Those who tell the message about Christ out of love know that God has put me here to defend the Good News. But the others are insincere. They tell the message about Christ out of selfish ambition in order to stir up trouble for me while I'm in prison. But what does it matter? Nothing matters except that, in one way or another, people are told the message about Christ, whether with honest or dishonest motives, and I'm happy about that. Yes, I will continue to be happy" (Philippians 1:15-18, God's Word Translation). Like I said, sometimes you've got to fight fire with fire. Sometimes it pays to use the same strategy!

My main point however, is that you and I can stir up the gift within. In fact, we are instructed to do this. Hebrews 10:23-24 says, "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works."

So I say, "Get a spoon!" Whether you just need to get in front of your mirror and stir yourself up, or you sense that others around you need stirring, either way, get a spoon and get started! The Holy Spirit loves chocolate milk! He'll jump right in and help you!

(I hope I've been able to be a "spoon" in your life.)