“From Empty to Full” (The Refill)

Pastor Jim Lowe III

Sunday Morning, 9:30am Stream 01/11/26 (2nd Sunday Message)

hashtags:

#guidinglight #pastrami

#Faith #heart

#believer #surrender

#love #showinglove

#loveofGod #loveofChrist

#repentance #serving

#forgiveness #Godworks

#savedtoserve #overflow

#protector #Expectation

#worry #Favor

#deliverance #listeningears

#Godspeaks #blessings

#servingGod #heartafterGod

#treasure #complaining #God’speace

 

{All scriptures are NIV84 unless stated}

 

Many of us have suffered losses over 2025. some of us even more.

We’re going to talk about how to identify that loss. what the Lord says we do about it.

and how we get it to come back.

If you want a short description of what that looks like.

look at the life of Job. He lost practically everything.

and in HIS case…

it wasn’t because of anything he did.

He suffered devastating loses. but at the right time,

the Lord returned everything back to him. and he received double for it all!

For everyone who has had losses.

the Lord has given us the blueprint for how we can get it back.

some of us have gone without so long we don’t even remember what we had!

This year

 

2026: The Year of the Comeback!

I’m going to give the short version of all of this. and expound right after.

Here is our foundation scripture:

2 Chronicles 7:14

14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

If God’s people who are called by his name will: Humble Themselves

Pray

Seek His Face

Turn From Their Wicked Ways The Lord Will Heal

How Will He Heal?

The Lord Will Restore and Replenish

“In 2026 If We Turn More To Him, We Are Believing He Will Restore What We’ve Lost and Replenish What Is Empty!”

Now that we’ve gotten it all out… let’s break it down fully.

Because we are talking about restoring and replenishing… this series will be titled

The Refill

and the message for today:

 

Message Title:

“From Empty to Full” (The Refill)

Let’s go back to our foundation scripture and start in v13.

2 Chronicles 7:13-14

13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Let’s talk about this scripture. What was happening here.

Solomon had finished the temple for the Lord The Lord was pleased.

his glory filled the temple so heavy. no one could minister.

no one could even go in.

So when the Lord talks about shutting up the heavens.

It isn’t the Lord punishing…

because of something they did.

This was a future promise.

based on something they did.

So the Lord is saying to Solomon:

“If situations happen…here’s what you do, and here’s what I do.” “When I shut up the heavens so there is no rain…”

What Does Rain Mean?

The Lord said that when there is no rain. the Lord had a purpose for the rain

In Deuteronomy 11

the Lord told his people that if they obeyed the commands he gave. and loved him with everything:

Deuteronomy 11:14

14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains,

so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil.

The rain has a purpose.

the ran was there so they could gather grain - new wine and oil

…what they needed.

Isaiah 55:10 says that rain and snow come down from heaven. it waters the earth.

to provide seed for the sower and bread for the eater. it was to bless the work of the sower.

It’s not the JUST “water from the sky.”

It provided stability for food - caused their crops to grow -

Stability for economics - crops/products could be sold - money It provided a visual representation of the Lord’s blessing.

You did the work…

The Lord rains on it.

you SEE the Lord blessing your hands.

That was the Lord’s doing.

 

We Do The Work, But He Sends The Rain!

It’s his doing because we can’t create the rain. we can do the work…

but we can’t create the rain We need him!

we can lay out the plan…but he has to bless it.

But what happens when the rain stops?

This is when what used to produce before… doesn’t produce like it used to.

It gets deep.

because you’re “scattering seed” but there’s no water.

What does non-production look like?

 

• When You Pray But Don’t Feel Close To The Lord

• When You’re Always Busy But Never Refreshed

• When You Come To Church Every Sunday But Still Don’t See Change

• When The Leaders In God’s Church Feel Burned Out

Doesn’t mean that you aren’t doing the work…

This means that the normal things we do don’t REAP what they should.

The seed we scatter on the ground isn’t producing a crop.

This Is A Clue That You Need A Fresh Rain From The Lord!

The Lord says to Solomon that when we do things and DON’T get the normal return from them…

this is when we need the a healing on our land!

{Question}:

How Many Of You Need More Rain In 2026?

If we need more rain this year:

we have to look back at the foundation scripture.

Because to GET the rain…

there’s something we have to do.

 

Pressing Through A Drought Requires More Than Prayer - It Requires Better Positioning!

So let’s go back to our scripture:

1 Chronicles 7:13-14

13 “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Now that we’ve talked about rain. what that looks like.

Let’s begin to look at the blueprint. When you suffer loss.

Loss = 1. humility -> 2. pray -> 3. seek -> 4. turn around = forgive heal

 

This Year If Something Feels Like It’s Missing:

• Lower Yourself

• Look Up

• Live Different

Let’s talk about HOW the Lord will heal our land.

I prayed quite a bit and asked the Lord HOW he will heal our land.

There were two words given to me for this.

 

Restore and Replenish

This week we’ll talk about the first one.

 

How The Lord Will Heal:

- Restoration

 

Restore:

• to bring back (a previous right, practice, custom, or situation); reinstate

• to repair or renovate (so as to return it to its original condition

 

Restore - What Was Damaged and Broken Will Be Made Whole

So this goes into examples of what we are believing the Lord to restore this year

 

Things We Are Believing The Lord To Restore This Year:

Health, Family, Our Relationship With Him

Let’s look at some scriptures on restoration:

Jeremiah 30:17

17 But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the LORD,

 

Are You In Need Of Healing? In 2026 There Is A Report You Can Believe! It’s The Report Of The Lord!

What About Our Families? Our Children? For those who are praying for their children.

Jeremiah 31:16-17

16 This is what the LORD says: “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” declares the LORD. “They will return from the land of the enemy. 17 So there is hope for your future,” declares the  LORD. “Your children will return to their own land.

There Is Hope For Your Future! Our God Can Restore It All!

How about our relationship with him?

We have John 3:16 - which restores our relationship back to the Lord.

James 4:8

8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Return to him and he will restore the relationship.

Amos 9:11-15 (MSG)

13–15 “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” GOD’s Decree.“Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel: “They’ll rebuild their ruined cities. They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine. They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables. And I’ll plant them, plant them on their own land. They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.” GOD, your God, says so.

He will restore his relationship with us!

 

Some Other Scriptures Dealing With Restoration:

• John 3:16

• 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

• Psalm 23:3

• Hosea 6:1-2

• Isaiah 61:7

{recap/ending}

We are establishing 2026 as the year of the comeback. There are things we have lost over the years.

The enemy may have been defeating us in many ways over the years. Fear, Opportunities, Relationships

Finances, Burnout, Joy!

But the Lord is saying while you might have been losing….

this year you can make a comeback!

But it requires you to do something.

 

Zechariah 1:3-6

3 Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the LORD Almighty. 4 Do not be like your forefathers, to whom the earlier prophets proclaimed: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Turn from your evil ways and your evil practices.’ But they would not listen or pay attention to me, declares the LORD. 5 Where are your forefathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever? 6 But did not my words and my decrees, which I commanded my servants the prophets, overtake your forefathers? “Then they repented and said, ‘The LORD Almighty has done to us what our ways and practices deserve, just as he determined to do.’ ”

Someone has to make a choice to bring it back.

 

If Can’t A Comeback For You Until You Fully Come Back To Him!

So the question is….

If The Lord is going to do amazing things for you this year….

 

What Are You Going To Do Differently?

PLEASE make sure to come out to our small groups on Wednesday. There is a LOT to break down…

There is a LOT the Lord has shown….

There IS a lot to recover…

and WE need to position ourselves to do it.