A question has been asked for which an answer is desired but should never be discovered. How far can my car go on empty? Do you know anyone who does that, testing the duration of the last remaining drops of gasoline? They will wait for the dashboard light to activate while the gauge is on E. Then, they will keep driving, hoping to squeeze a few more miles out of the vehicle before they need to stop at the gas station.
How many people actually do this? “According to a recent AAA survey, 24 million (11 percent) of American drivers continue to drive after the low fuel warning light turns on. Drivers who attempt to stretch a tank of gas too far could end up stranded.”1
Besides being stranded, an even worse scenario could happen. Most cars these days have the fuel pump inside the tank. The entire time you are driving or idling, the fuel pump is supplying the engine with fuel. As with any kind of pump, it heats up when in use. Keeping the tank full of fuel submerges the pump in the cool liquid which provides a natural coolant for the pump. Replacing the fuel pump is a $500 repair or more.
Can anyone answer how far you can drive when the low fuel light activates? No. Every vehicle is different as are driving styles. You could get 10 miles, five, two – or not even get around the block before you can go no further.
Many of us reading this devotional are horrified at the thought of running a vehicle on empty and struggle to find the rationale behind such a practice. The person running their vehicle on empty isn’t saving any money. It’s going to cost more to put in 20 gallons than it would have to put in 10 gallons, and it will take twice as long to fill an empty tank.
There’s just no good reason to run on empty!
Are you running on empty? I’m not asking about your vehicle. I’m asking about you, dear believer. Ephesians 5:17-18 says, “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. (18) And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.” If you were to read this literally in the Greek, the verb tense would say that we are to “be being filled.” Using the gas tank analogy, we are told to keep the gauge constantly on F. We are keeping the nozzle in the tank and letting the pump constantly run.
What does a spiritual gas pump look like? Where do we go to get the spiritual fuel we need? Obviously, we start by going to the Word of God and prayer. Have you gotten filled up yet today at the pump of your Bible study? Have you filled up on the fellowship of prayer with the Father? This is something we need to do constantly throughout the day.
There are other ways to keep ourselves filled. Ephesians 5:19-21 tells us, “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; (20) Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; (21) Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” These are great ways to keep the tank full.
We need to constantly fill our hearts and minds with the things of the Lord. Some, though, will “drive” all week and then pull into church on Sunday, thinking they can get their tanks filled for another week. The preacher is supposed to be a full-service station attendant. If they don’t leave with their gas gauge on F, it’s the preacher’s fault.
WAIT A MINUTE!!!! In one hour, the preacher is expected to pump 20-30 gallons of spiritual fuel into your tank. It’s not possible! That’s like saying eating one meal every week is enough to sustain you physically for the rest of the week. If you want to run that experiment, give it a whirl and let me know how that worked out for you. Do it consistently for several weeks. How do you suppose you are going to feel after the first week? What about the first month?
I recommend that we neither test the fuel gauge in our car OR our spiritual life – especially our spiritual life. Stay filled up. Keep the gauge on F. How far can we spiritually go on empty? A much shorter distance than if our car was on empty!
1https://news.aaa-calif.com/news/24-million-americans-continue-to-drive-on-empty-and-could-end-up-stranded#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20recent%20AAA%20survey%2C%2024%20million,after%20the%20low%20fuel%20warning%20light%20turns%20on.