H2O

“…but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.”  John 4:14

 

 

It has been more than a few weeks since I have earnestly opened my bible and read the words.

 

It has been more than a few weeks since I have deeply read a devotional.

 

It has been spotty at best, that I have attended a church service in the last few months.

 

And all is ok.  I’m good with God and He is still my Savior.  The routines were merely broken and replaced with necessities that couldn’t wait.

 

And then Christmas Day arrived….

 

In the Emergency Room of our local hospital, God gave me a good example to make clear that all was not good.  Illness has a way of making you reach out to the Great Healer.  And if you’re lucky, to hear Him give you a lesson where you didn’t think you needed one.  I heard His prompting loud and clear in that hospital bed—so much so that I told my husband right then and there.

 

My body had enough of a lack of water.  The illness that came on suddenly days before, took such a toll that my system was in shut down mode.  As hard as I tried, water would not stay in.  I had a crash-course on the effects of dehydration to this wonderful creation called a body.  I was reminded that you may be able to live without bread, but you cannot live without water.

 

And with the beeping of the machines around me, in my memory I saw the scene play out of the Samaritan woman at the well.  I saw the scene of Jesus standing next to her, talking of the Living Water that quenches all thirst.  The Water that sustains and gives life. The Water that won’t allow death. The Water…a gift.

 

But that is where my lesson hit me.  Jesus is not a one-gulp drink.  We must drink continuously to stay hydrated.  But sometimes, the thirst dulls and necessities get in the way—we can go without replenishing.  Or so we think.

 

As I was alone with my thoughts, God put some things on my mind.  A thought of how I had become less patient with my family.  Thoughts of how snarky my tones were.  A thought of the panic I was feeling over our country’s troubles.  Thoughts of the small feelings of despair that were taking over.  There, I discovered—my soul was more dehydrated than my body.

 

The ill effects of a depleted soul isn’t as quickly determined as three days without fluids.  Where the body stops functioning quickly, the soul slowly loses hope.  Where the body breaks down cell by cell, the soul replaces joy with angst.  Where the body rebels, the soul accepts less.  None of this is seen until there is a day when you question why your soul is so achy.

 

And that’s what I found in that hospital bed.  As the bags of IV fluid hung above me, bringing my body back to life, I felt Him tell me that I needed replenishment of something far greater than H2O.  My necessities over the past few months robbed me of the priorities that kept me nourished.  The priorities needed to return. I needed a refill of Living Water.

 

Do you?

 

 

During this season of renewal, I challenge us to evaluate what our daily intake is.  If we find ourselves sluggish and without life, maybe it’s time to get back to seeking the Word.  If we find ourselves seeing the bad and the drab, maybe it’s time to get back in the Word.  If we find ourselves chasing the necessities—maybe it’s time to run back to the Word.

 

I beg of you not to forget to check your Water intake. Be refreshed, be renewed…fill your cup daily to sustain your life.  It is a gift.  A sip may be all you can take sometimes, but oh what a wonderful drink of refreshment it will be.