Keeping Your Bota Full...

One thing that I always admired about my wife, even from before the earliest days of our relationship, was her confidence.  I remember back in our junior year in high school when we were just friends as part of a larger group friends that enjoyed getting together on weekends for various fun activities.  It seemed like whenever we came up with a potential plan for something to do that she would always be one of the first to jump in and offer transportation and/or ideas as to how we could enhance the event.  And even though she was physically one of the smallest members of our group, you would always find her right in the middle of the action, be it a touch/tackle game of football on the beach, a softball game at Howarth Park or a gathering for Ice-Cream at Basket Robbins on Fourth Street.

In hindsight, I can now see that we unknowingly began to work as a team even back then… a year before we starting dating!  Many times I would come up with an idea and it was usually Piper who seemed to be right in sync with me by taking the suggestion and tiding up all the loose ends of the plan.  Once we finally connected, she was almost always open to trying new and exciting adventures.  And while she was never one that would just have to hold other people’s babies, when we started our family it was like she was born to be a Mom. 

She loved babies but didn’t necessarily feel the need to instantly be close to them and giggle in their faces.  But when our kids were young… well, it was a different story!  And believe me when I say, she would NOT let just anyone hold one of our kids!  I think one of the reasons that she was so confident with the things she did was because of the degree of spiritual discernment that she had attained through the years of her personal relationship with the Lord.  (She often talked about the day she walked down the aisle when she was just eight years old to receive Jesus as Savior and Lord)  I’ve said it a lot, in fact was just sharing with the CNA who was here on Wednesday helping Piper, that she is the MOST spiritually discerning woman that I have ever had contact with.

Then there was her passion to homeschool our kids.  During those years it was like she was NEVER afraid to do any new project, teach any subject or go on any outlandish field trip that our large Independent Study Program group had planned.  I can hardly remember her balking on anything.  She was determined, confident and did whatever research needed to complete a new task or teach a new subject.

But I also believe that the real reason for her confidence, level of spiritual discernment and every other talent she was blessed with, can be directly attributed to the PRAISE that filled her heart.  Let me tell you… she was BIG on PRAISING THE LORD!  It was quite a common event in our home for her to stop us in the middle of a family activity, homeschool or meal and say: “You know, I think we need to PRAISE THE LORD!”  She just seemed to be able to sense when things would begin to get muddled down in self-pity, complaining, tiredness, or under attack of the enemy of our souls and her solution was always the same… PRASING THE LORD!

Another favorite Psalm of PRAISE for me is found in Psalm 40.  In the third verse the Psalmist declares after waiting patiently for the Lord to hear his cry in the midst of a horrible situation, that “He placed a new song in my mouth, a song of PRAISE to our God.  Many will see this and worship.  They will trust the Lord.”  I thought for a moment that I had looked up the wrong word when I checked the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “song” in this verse.  But after I rechecked it a few times I realized that I had the right definition.  According to Strong’s the word in the Greek describes “a skin bag used as a bottle.”  My first, second and third thoughts when I read this were: “Huh?  Am I missing something here?”

But the more I prayed and meditated on it, I began to see a picture of a shepherd or traveler in Bible times with a goat skin bag over his shoulder filled with wine or water.  The liquid in that Traditional Spanish Bota as it is known in some circles today (See: https://www.tienda.com/dons-travels/botacare.html), was not only for refreshment, but was also a source of life sustaining fluids in a harsh environment, in times of extended activity, or when one was physically strained.

Now put that idea into the mind of the Psalmist at that time and it is easy to see his reference to the Bota or goat skin bag as a container of the life-sustaining reservoir of PRAISE! Piper was never a wine drinker and even though she knew it was good for her, she never really enjoyed drinking a lot of water either… BUT what she did do was to partake of A LOT of PRAISE! She had the discernment and the experience behind it to know that PRAISING the Lord was a key to the alleviation of worry, fear, confusion, anger and stress… among other things!

She also had the sense of mind to know that in order to keep that reservoir of PRAISE full and therefore available for any situation, at any moment, that you needed to keep filling up your personal Bota by regular and consistent time in the Word, through prayer and… you guessed it… through more PRAISE!  And for those of us who have been blessed to know Piper, you know that she did these things, and that PRAISE, a big smile, a kind word and a happy disposition were just a part of who she was… and still is today!  She may not have the capacity to do all those things right now, but in my role as husband and 24/7 caregiver I do it for her… and do my best to keep that attitude of PRAISE alive and active in the atmosphere of our home.

One thing I learned about the use and care of the Traditional Spanish Bota was that it has to be seasoned before its first use.  Once this process is complete you never have to do that again… UNLESS… you stop using it for a prolonged time.  In that case you have to go through the long process of seasoning the skin again before you can put the liquid of your chose inside.  And that same analogy can be used for your PRAISE Bota as well.  Like Piper, you need to keep your Bota full of PRAISES so you don’t run out and never have to go without, while you re-season your container.

So there ya go!  Lots to think about when it comes to having a Bota of your own.  You might want to check the online link above and learn a little about the Traditional Spanish Bota before you try using this analogy with someone else!  Have a great weekend and keep your PRAISES up… what’s that old saying in church circles… “Be Blessed to Be a Blessing!” With your personal Bota filled to the brim with the PRAISES of God, you can’t help but be a blessing to others!

We’ll see you again next week… and until then, keep asking yourself… Am I expecting to have my BOTA filled with the life sustaining PRAISES of God today?”