Today I received an email from the government. (Always a joy , right ???) Thankfully it came from “recreation.gov” meaning that the government had taken the time to send me an email with information about how they thought I might like to relax next year.
With a border crisis of unprecedented and historic proportions growing daily, Afghani refugees floundering as they are abandoned by their allies, and so many other critical issues before us, it’s somewhat amazing to think that we have people sitting at desks whose most important task yesterday was to remind me that I may want to go white water rafting next year.
Sure, there are times when in the midst of life’s overwhelming challenges one simply has to deliberately set them aside and focus on something that relaxes and refocuses the brain and the spirit. But it’s far too easy to ignore major challenges in hopes that they might just go away. As believers in Christ, He calls us and equips us to step into life’s greatest challenges with His power and His presence. To build upon recreation.gov’s illustration of river fun, if you want to be a part of some of the most beautiful and exhilarating experiences, it’s time to grab life by the paddles and step out on the river.
Today’s verse actually takes it a step farther. Jesus says,
HAVE FAITH IN ME AND YOU WILL HAVE LIFE-GIVING WATER FLOWING FROM DEEP INSIDE YOU
What an image! What a promise! Jesus Himself invites us to come to Him and drink. It’s an image of us inviting Him inside of us as He simultaneously places us inside of Him. It’s an invitation to place our faith into the Faithful One. He says the ones who have faith in Him will have life giving water flowing from deep inside of them.
John explains that Jesus was referring to the Holy Spirit. When we receive Christ and are filled with His Holy Spirit, with His power. He moves us, He directs us, and through the gifts of the Holy Spirit He equips us to fulfill the very tasks for which we were created into which we have been called.
There are times where living life is very similar to walking through the desert. It is unbelievably uncomfortable, every step requires incredible effort. And the challenge of simply moving forward is suddenly interrupted by the recognition that you are so terribly thirsty. We who know Christ can come to Him in those times, and He will either sustain us or refresh us. When the purpose of the desert is refinement, it is then that our Lord mercifully sustains us. When the tasks before us in the desert have simply become an overwhelming challenge, He brings us into His presence and refreshes us.
But we are so much more than just desert workers. Today’s verse gives us a different perspective, the perspective of being a change agent.
HAVE FAITH IN ME AND YOU WILL HAVE LIFE-GIVING WATER FLOWING FROM DEEP INSIDE YOU
He fills us, and His life-giving water flows out from us. We are not just workers in the desert, we are called to be the river.
I have been in the Judean desert and observed the impact of rain from the north flowing down dry and rocky river beds. I have stood and watched as rivers of water cascade over cliffs, fall into the desert valleys below and begin to move with a power that is almost unimaginable. What were dry and rocky places moments ago are suddenly filled with water moving with such speed and power that it instantly changes everything it touches.
These massive insertions of water can even be dangerous. Bridges and roadways built across these dry riverbeds have even been washed away as they are inundated. Massive rocks are moved like a little child’s toy blocks, overwhelmed by the power contained within the moving water.
Sometimes the challenges of life we face look like massive boulders. Sometimes the challenges of life being faced by those around us look like massive boulders, too. There are things that appear to be too big and too heavy for us to handle. But appearances can be deceiving.
It has been said that in a contest between a river and a rock, the river always wins. The rock may be large, but the river is unrelenting. The river surrounds the rock. It flows over, it pushes its way under, it surrounds on every side. The pressure imposed by the river is constant. And sooner or later, the river always wins. The Grand Canyon of the United States is an incredible visual lesson of this profound lesson.
So, step out and get moving. Grab life by the paddles and go BE THE RIVER. The power of moving water is amazing.
Decide to be a part of some of the most beautiful and exhilarating experiences in life as you watch the river of Christ’s power change the landscape of the lives around you. Open your eyes and look around you. You will see dry and dusty people everywhere. One of the great messages of Advent is that Christ chose to enter our world and with Him bring life everlasting. It is a poignant illustration that He chose to do it in a small town on the edge of a large desert.
He makes a way in the desert and brings rivers of living water.
Be the river.
HAVE FAITH IN ME AND YOU WILL HAVE LIFE-GIVING WATER FLOWING FROM DEEP INSIDE YOU
