Friday, August 31, 2012

Wasted Treasure

"I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:12 (NIV)

We held it right in our hands.

Liquid gold.

And then we poured it down the sink.

I don't know if it was post-delivery haze, a state of absolute giddiness, or lack of sound sleep...on the part of both mommy and grandmommy, but we did it. We emptied "tubies" of pumped milk down the drain.

It was all so innocent. We thought that all that pumping was to increase my daughter's milk supply. Going back to work was months away. The lactation specialist advised staying away from bottles until our bright-eyed baby girl was used to nursing. So what were we going to do with all that milk?

Uh, yes, now we know that we should have been freezing it.

And my precious daughter, turned mommy, is spending every free minute (including her lunch time) hooked up to that machine. Just to produce enough milk for the next day.

Yes, we often find ourselves whacking our foreheads and asking ourselves, "What were we thinking???"

But my girl is a trooper and does what it takes to feed her little one! 

During one of my stints of head whacking and anguishing over the wasted treasure, I glanced over at my pink Women's Devotional Bible.

I had to ask myself, "How often have I wasted that 'nourishment'? How many times have I let precious time in His Word run right down the drain, as I chose to sleep in...or check Facebook...or just move right on with the duties of the day?"

Then I wondered, "What am I doing to feed others who are 'hungry'? Am I sharing the treasure of God's Word and the fulfillment of His love with them?"

Am I filled with His Word and nourished richly, to the point that His love is the overflow of my life? That's what I pray for.

Lord, please forgive me for the treasure I've wasted, the time and the opportunities that I've poured right down the drain. Keep me from making those mistakes again. Draw me to Yourself and to Your Word. Help me to hunger and thirst for You. And when my soul is filled, may it overflow with sweet nourishment for those in my path.

9 comments:

Meredith said...

As a mom who breastfed for almost 13 months, I felt your pain!

This is a wonderful post. I too waste too much time. I am trying to be better and even started an accountability challenge with Hello Mornings.
http://inspiredtoaction.com/resources/hellomornings/

Hester's Heart said...

What a beautiful girl!

Such a great analogy Kristi - thank you!

Indeed, I am guilty of wasting too but am reminded of my need to hunger and thirst for the Living Water -

Blessings to you, Hester ;)

Kristi Butler said...

Meredith, it continues to be disheartening each time I watch her pump for every available ounce. We learned a lesson! I'll check out Inspired to Action!

Hester, you are so sweet!! Thanks for your encouragement! You are a blessing!

Unknown said...

Kristi,

I'm your newest following and I'm looking forward to stopping by and getting my thirst quenched with your comforting words. Thank-you for the reminder to place God first... when He paves the way for our days and carries us in the palm of His hands, we can enter in with confidence and thanksgiving for a day well spent.

Such an adorable girl, btw!

Marisa

Kristi Butler said...

Welcome, Marisa!! Thanks so much for joining in!! What sweet encouragement.

And thanks for the sweet words about our little cutie pie! She's such a love!

Praying sweet blessings for you!

Susan said...

Hi Baby Brooklyn!! How cute is she???

Ok, I nearly died when I found out you poured breast milk down the drain. Ugghh poor Rachel.

GREAT parallel to wasting spiritual nourishment. I'm thankful He doesn't zap me when I do that. (He should)

Thanks, Kristi!! Enjoy your long weekend. Love you!!!

Kristi Butler said...

Hey Susan! Yes, as we were on our way to the beach, we went through Laurinburg and my thoughts went from you to Scott to our server at Tupelo Honey and I really needed a biscuit and blueberry jam!!!!! That is also some good nourishment! :)

I pray that you are having a wonderful weekend!!

Love you!

Jean said...

Down the drain??? Oh, my! Did you know you can apply at hospitals to provide mother's milk for their milk bank? They pasturize it, freeze it and use it for babies if parents request it.

In the old days it was called wet-nursing.

But to your devotional thoughts. How true. We throw pearls to swine and milk down the drain all the time, don't we? We ignoret the treasures in God's Word until we're desperate.

Thanks for saying it beautifully, Kristi.

ALSO - I'm passing an "AWARD" along to you. Check out my Encouraging Words blog, please.

Blessings from one grandma to another.

Jean

Kristi Butler said...

Thank you for your sweet words, Jean!! And thank you for the award!! I'll head on over!!

Love you!!