Finding life in the hollow place

“Then he became very thirsty; so he cried out to the LORD and said ‘You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant; and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?’” Judges 15:18 NKJV

Samson had just attained a great victory over the Philistines- killing 1,000 men with the jawbone of a donkey, and now he finds himself thirsty. After this great victory under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, his earthen vessel was left depleted and empty. As I read this scripture, I am reminded of the feelings of emptiness I had felt on the heels of success- like when I completed my Ministerial Internship Program and had to face the fact that I did not feel like I belonged anywhere. I had just finished a milestone in fulfilling my calling and was left wondering, “what now, Lord?” Or that feeling of emptiness after the birth of my child and an inexplicable depression loomed over my head. Or when I deliver a Word on Sunday and find myself alone on Monday morning wondering if I accomplished what God had sent me to do. I am just wondering if anybody else can relate to the thirst following a victory. It’s the same concept as a successful person still feeling unhappy or a wealthy person seeking the high of a substance or a mistress. Or maybe it’s kind of like the doubt that tried to drown Peter after he had walked on water.

At a time when most people think that they would feel most alive, Samson found himself empty; he was so completely empty that he was sure that the Lord was going to let him die in the land of His enemies. As I contemplated this thought, I found myself wondering what makes me feel most alive and I came to the conclusion that I think I feel most alive when I’m hollow. I know that sounds so backward for the culture I live in. I am part of the social media generation: fill your life full, show all your accomplishments, leave no empty space and just live life to the fullest. We are the “live your best life” generation. But I read in God’s Word that “His grace is made perfect in my weakness.” (IN MY WEAKNESS!!!) His grace is not made perfect where I am full, where I am strong, or where I am capable. No, God’s grace is made perfect in my hollow places, in my weakness.

See, I relate to Samson. From the outside looking in, Samson was a strong, victorious, mighty warrior. There was no enemy he could not defeat. He had killed a lion, 30 of Ashkelon’s men, and 1,000 Philistines. He was a man of strength and fortitude like no other; however, it would not be external forces that would lead to his demise. No, it would be his hollow place. When I found myself at the cross seeking forgiveness, the world around me told me that I was strong, resilient, brave, and could accomplish anything; but, like Samson, I was a hollow warrior. We need to understand that God’s grace is going to be made perfect in our hollow places if we will just let him into them.

We have to get desperate enough, thirsty enough, and brave enough to cry out from our hollow place. Samson cried out to God in a desperate state and God’s hallowed met his hollow. God wants to make your hollow place his holy place. He wants to make that empty place so full of His holiness that you and He have a holy ground right there in the depths of your being- right in the middle of all your ugly mess, God wants to pour out grace such as you have never seen before. And every time that hollow place tries to cry out after this holy confrontation, you’re going to call it by its new name. See, after Samson was revived he changed the name of that hollow place to “En Hakkore,” which means “fountain of the crier.” Friend, your fountain, your “En Hakkore,” will never dry. Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that “whoever drinks of the water I shall give him will never thirst. [That] water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.

I’m wondering how many “En Hakkores “ are about to spring up. How many fountains of the crier is God getting ready to fill? If you are tired of your hollow place defining you, I invite you to cry out to God at this moment. He is ready, He is listening, and He is able to fill that hollow place in a way that only He can.