Oftentimes, we thoughtlessly consume the bountiful blessings our heavenly Father bestows upon us and focus continually on the gifts -like looking down into a deep barrel and scooping up the gifts all the while neglecting the Giver. In doing so, as we reach into the barrel time and time again without raising our eyes to God to give Him thanks, we will suddenly find ourselves scraping at the bottom.
There will come a time, after having habitually neglected God, that He will allow us to fall into that deep and empty barrel we are scraping the bottom of so that we have no other choice but to look upward to Him for deliverance. Instead of waiting till you're reaching into the bottom of the barrel, habitually receive EVERYTHING with thanksgiving{Ephesians 4:20}. While looking up to give thanks, you will discover that the barrel never gets empty. In fact, what you give thanks to God for and have in hand will be plenty for the moment.
John writes about a time the disciples found themselves "scraping the bottom of the barrel" when confronted with a lack of food for the multitudes{John6:1-14}. They managed to "scrape-up" one child's lunch but they needed to feed multiple thousands. When they gave the small portion of food to Jesus they asked, "What is this in comparison to so many?" Jesus, however, received the food with thanksgiving and blessed God for it. No one in that crowd went hungry that day and there were twelve baskets of left-overs gathered.
Jesus never saw the bottom of the barrel because he gave thanks to God for what He had in His hands. Then God blessed and multiplied what Jesus had gratefully received so that there was enough to bless others -even above and beyond everyone's need.
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