I don’t know about you, but I am tired of the almost $4.00 a gallon price tag. I went to the station the other day on empty. I have a 2023 Chevy Traverse, and the tank is about 15 gallons. The math is easy: 15 gallons x $4.00 equals $60. That, my friends, is a lot of money, but what do you do when that’s the price, and you need the product? If you want the gas, you pay the price.

When it comes to sacrificial love, your spiritual tank can become empty as well. There are a lot of things you could call it, but when you recognize it you might go to the “spiritual gas station” if you will. Where are these “spiritual gas stations?” They are found in Christ! The stations are the means by which we connect with God the Father, by the grace of the Son, through the presence of the Holy Spirit. Traditionally, these “stations” are called the Means of Grace.

When you find your “spiritual gas tank” on empty, you must find a means of grace to “refill.” The Common Means of Grace are typically considered the activities of prayer, Bible reading, Bible meditation, and Holy Communion, among others. These acts might be considered the “pulling up to the pump” of refueling. The “pumps” are always there. It is up to you to go to the “pump” to receive what it has. Now, some might consider going to the “pump” a work and then quote, “We are saved by grace, not by works.” But, is that really work?” 

Think of it like this: unless you work from home, you have some time for a commute. It might be as short as across the street, or it might take an hour on a train, plane, or automobile. When does your employer say the workday starts? When you hit the alarm button to silence it for the last time? When you step into the shower, so you don’t offend others? When you get in the car to drive down the freeway? No, work has not been done yet. You are commuting to the location where the work will take place. Work doesn’t start until you “clock in.” 

Let’s take that analogy to the means of Grace. Prayer, Communion, Bible reading, and the like are not “works,” they are the commute, if you will, to get to where the real work is done. What do you do? You “pull up” to the “spiritual pump” and refill your “spiritual tanks.” Like most gas stations, the “spiritual gas station” is pre-pay only. Thankfully, someone has already done the work and paid the price for you to refill your tank. All you had to do was “commute” to the place where the “spiritual gas” was already “paid” for in advance. You did not work. You receive because someone decided to give you something you didn’t deserve: a full spiritual tank.

Your tank is full. Now what? Do you sit at the station waiting for your tank to go empty again? No, you leave the station with a full tank of gas, and you’re off to the next place on your appointment list. You don’t waste gas idling at the station. You go out and do the employer’s will. 

The same is true for the person who has been refueled with God’s love through grace. You leave the station and head off to your next God-planned appointment on your schedule. You use the fuel that God provides.

So the action items or the takeaway are these:
1. Do you have yourself an “F” or do you have yourself and “E.” (Yes, this line is from the Andy Griffith Show: A man in a hurry.) If you find you have an “E,” you’re in the right place: fill up. If you are on “F,” It is time to go. Don’t waste your “spiritual gas.” Take time to love your neighbor. Spend the love you have for your neighbor’s well-being. Most importantly, don’t waste “your gas!” (If really can waste it.)