Our Stories
Living Water
By Kelly Humphreys | posted 05/06/2010
"On the final and climactic day of the Feast, Jesus took his stand. He cried out, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Rivers of living water will brim and spill out of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way, just as the Scripture says.' (He said this in regard to the Spirit...)" (John 7:38, The Message)
"There is a river that washes you clean..." So goes a song by Jars of Clay, which is playing while I write about water. I love that song; it reminds me of so many places in the Bible where water is a theme, from baptism to living water to streams to rushing waters to the river in Revelation that leads right to the throne of God in heaven.
The first time when water first meant something to me was when I was nine, and my cousin Opal, who was 10 at the time, was baptized where we grew up in Mill Creek in Oregon. She was ready to be baptized, but I was not, even though I had been saved that year. I ended up being baptized after coming back to the Lord when I was 19, after years of rebellion. Opal, however, has always had a strong faith, and her baptism at an early age was a sign of that. I remember seeing her glad face, and being glad for her, but being a little mystified why she would go into the freezing water of the creek to be baptized. I didn't understand.
Years later, I understand. Baptism is a symbol of the living water that Jesus provides for us, of washing us clean, and of dying to self and rising again, just as Jesus Himself did. And if it's uncomfortable or cold or awkward being in front of people, that's okay; we grow closer to God through experiences likes these.
Just as water nourishes and satisfies our body, so does living water nourish and satisfy our soul. When we are thirsty, nothing satisfies like a cold drink of water. The human body is made up of water, from 55-78%, depending on one's age (babies' bodies are 78%). Yet our very soul is saturated - soaked through and through - by living water. "Come to me, you who are thirsty, and you will be satisfied," says God in Isaiah 55. There is something indeed very satisfying in the image of passages like in Psalm 1, where we are described as being like a tree planted by streams of water, fully alive, bearing fruit; its leaves do not wither.
I love where Ezekiel talks about his vision of the glory of the Lord, and he describes God's voice as being "like the roar of rushing waters."(Ezekiel 43:2) I recently went to Snoqualmie Falls again and just listened to the roar. It reminded me of this verse and also how God pours grace out like that in waterfalls of grace, as John Piper has described it, pouring out over us and onto others around us. Or when I look at the ocean and see and hear wave upon wave, I think of the verse that says about Jesus, "And from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace." (John 1:16) His living water is also visualized in Revelation 22, where heaven has a "river of the water of life" that flows right to the throne of the living God.
"Living Water" is going to be our theme at the Creekside Spring 24 Hour Time of Prayer (held at the Creekside Ministry Center, Friday, May 21, 6:00 pm through Saturday, May 22 at 6 pm). It is going to be a time of seeking God, thirsting for His presence, and "being found" and being satisfied by Him. For those of you who don't think you can come sit for an hour and pray, the time goes by actually very quickly. Usually people come out wishing they could stay more, although their schedule for the day might not permit it.
For those of you who have not experienced it, you come into the Ministry Center quietly and go into the back, where you will be directed to different stations or places, different ways to connect with God. Or you can just go sit on one of the couches and pray for an hour, whatever you want to do or feel led to do. Please see or email me to sign up. And you will drink deeply of the living water of God:
As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God? (Psalm 42:1, NIV)
See you there!
Kelly can be reached via email.
