Longing for Water

I just finished reading Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, & the Miracle that Set Them Free, by Hector Tobar.  It's the true story of the 33 miners who survived a terrible experience of being trapped deep in a mine, after the ramp leading out to the surface was blocked by crashing rock, on Aug. 5, 2010.  All 33 miners survived the huge crash but were imprisoned in the mountain, unable to escape.  They carefully rationed a small amount of water and food, to last for 17 days.  When the bottled water ran out, they were forced to drain water from vehicles in the mine, water tinted with oil.  They all lost drastic amounts of weight, until a few were described as skin and bones.

Their hope gradually faded; several wrote farewell letters to loved ones, letters that would probably never be found.  The food ran out, along with any hope.  They were all weak; some were sick.  Then they began hearing noises which they later recognized as drills coming down from the surface, renewing their hope to live.  A small drill broke through; one miner began hitting the drill bit with a heavy hammer, to signal that they were alive.  A note to the surface told the rescuers that all 33 were still alive deep down in the dark.  The first thing the rescuers sent down in a tube, was clean bottled water, so that the 33 would no longer have to drink the tainted water from their vehicles.

(The 33 movie scheduled to come out on Nov. 13, is based on this book - Deep Down Dark by Tobar.)

In Psalm 63:1-2, David wrote, “You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary
 and beheld your power and your glory.”

David wrote this while he was a fugitive in the desert.  He remembered the sanctuary of the temple in Jerusalem and longed for God’s presence that he’d experienced in the past.  Listen to the deep yearning in his prayer: “Earnestly I SEEK you;
 I THIRST for you, my whole being LONGS for you, 
in a dry and parched land 
where there is no water.”

We have an empty place in our hearts, that can only be satisfied by God.  We thirst to love and be loved by others.  Many try to fill this void in unhealthy or sinful ways.  The only way to truly satisfy this void is through God’s living water.  Jesus said, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.  Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”

This life has difficulties and hard times; it can seem like traveling throught a desert after running out of water.  We get tired, thirsty, and lonely.  We miss conversations with close friends.  There may no one to help us or encourage us.  When we are weak or lonely, this life can like a dry, weary land where there is no water. 

But we don’t need to thirst.  God can quench our thirst, fill our hearts, and fill us with his Living Water.  Remember what God has done for you in the past.  Close your eyes and imagine standing in the sanctuary before the throne of God, with flowing fountains at each side.

If you do not have a church home, you are welcome to attend First Presbyterian Church in Deport, where we are blessed with the Water of Life each Sunday, in worship at 11:30 am.  The next time, you pour a glass of water, pause to thank the One who gives the Water of Life.

Wandering in a Dry, Weary Land

In our area, there has been very little rain in recent months.  Most green plants have turned brown.  Much of the western U.S. is still suffering drought.  In other places we’ve lived through a drought, civic leaders passed restrictions against car-washes and watering a lawn; such practices were seen as a waste of a precious resource.

Have you cut back on any unnecessary use of water yet?  Last year, my brother-in-law up North installed a plastic barrel at the bottom of a gutter drain spout, to collect rain water to water the garden & flowers.  I’ve seen one house in town that uses 5-gallon buckets for the same purpose.  When water gets scarce, it’s wise to consider ways to conserve it, to make the remaining water last longer.

In the Bible, a drought was seen in a spiritual way, as a dry, thirsty period when G seems far away.  Sometimes, a drought was seen as God’s punishment or discipline on his disobedient children. 

In Psalm 63:1, David wrote, “O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”  Have you been wandering in a dry, weary land? 

It would have been understandable if David had become so overwhelmed, but he had God’s promise that he would become the next King of Israel.  He knew that no matter the enemy did, the Lord was watching over him.  But when one goes through a dry, weary land for months or years, one can feel far away from God, perhaps even neglected.

Many of us, if not all, have gone through dry, weary times.  When we get discouraged by the challenges we face, it’s good for us to remember that God is stronger than the situation we face.  The Lord is our Shepherd who watches over us.  When we go through a dry, weary period, do you and I thirst for God?  Do we long for God, as David did?

In John 4, Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks this water I give him will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

If you’re going through a dry, weary time, seek the One who offers the Water of Life.  He will nourish your soul and give you strength to survive this drought.  The next time you enjoy a glass of cold, refreshing water, pause to thank the One who gives the water that wells up to eternal life.  Then seek his life.

A Story of Dean's Redemption

When Dean was a child, his parents divorced, which affected him deeply.   Dean grew up in a small town and attended a church with his Mom and sister.  After high school, he went away to a large university where he lost contact with the faith and was influenced by atheists.  As time went on, he read and learned as much as he could about atheism, and he became an outspoken advocate of atheist beliefs.

After college, Dean married his high school sweetheart and moved back to his hometown.  He got a job as a salesman at a new car dealer in a nearby city.  He and his wife had 3 children.  He continued to promote his atheist beliefs.  In his words, he knew all the reasons why belief in a god was unreasonable, and he didn’t hesitate to tell others.

One afternoon, the Gideons were giving New Testaments to children leaving the local elementary school.  When Dean arrived to pick up his children, he was upset about the children receiving the New Testaments.  He stood at a distance from the Gideons and as children walked by him, Dean took the New Testaments from the children and tore them into pieces.  How dare those Christians try to infect innocent children with their misguided beliefs.

Dean was promoted to sales manager at the car dealer.  After a few years of working hard, he was promoted to general manager of the entire dealership.  He earned more money than he’d ever dreamed of, but it came at a cost.  He worked 6 long days every week.  On his only day off, he was usually too tired to play with their children.

When the events of 9-11 happened, Dean was with his coworkers watching TV in the office.  Like many, he was shocked.  He decided that very day, that he was going to make some changes in his life, so that he could spend more time with his family.  Three months later, he resigned his job, to begin studying online at home for a new kind of work that would enable him to spend more time with his family.

A few months later, Dean’s step-father died suddenly.  Because Dean had rearranged his schedule to give him extra time for his family, he was able to spend significant time with his mother in the grieving process and help her move to a home closer to Dean’s family.

One day, Dean’s father called him.  His father had been living in Florida and had been robbed and lost all his savings.  Dean flew to Florida, helped his Dad pack up his stuff and move back to his hometown.  This enabled Dean to spend more time with his father who had some health problems.  As he looked back on things, it seemed like there was a plan to his life, and he had a feeling that a higher power was behind that plan.

That summer, Dean’s children were invited to a Vacation Bible School at a church.   Then his children wanted to attend the Sunday School at the church.  His wife later shared that God had been working in her life, and she’d decided to tell Dean that she was taking their children to church, even if he didn’t like it.  Imagine her shock when Dean suggested to her that they all attend church as a family!

As Dean learned more about the Christian faith, he decided to surrender control of his life to God, the same God that he’d try to persuade countless others to not believe in.  Later, when he and his wife joined the church, he shared his testimony with the congregation.  He began by saying, “Hi.  My name is Dean, and I’m a Christian.”

From Bitterness to Praise

Lamentations 3:22-23 is a familiar Scripture – “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”  In my experience, it’s common and easy to sing “Great is Thy Faithfulness.”

The thing is, Lamentations was written at a HORRIBLE time in Israel’s history.  Jeremiah wrote it after Jerusalem was destroyed by invading Babylonians.  Imagine the Oklahoma City bombing or 9-11 attacks on NYC.  Jerusalem’s homes and businesses were destroyed.  Their gold and valuables were taken by Babylonian soldiers.  Add this factor: The foreign invading army took many of Jerusalem’s residents as prisoners back to Babylon, to work as slaves.  Many Israelites felt deserted by God and bitter. 

If you read the rest of Lamentations 3, you’ll get a sense of Israel’s grief bitterness.  It’s amazing that Jeremiah was able to praise God for his love and faithfulness in the midst of such terrible destruction.  Would you be able praise God after your business and home were looted and burned, and some of your loved ones taken away as prisoners? 

How often do the people around us disappoint us?  How many people have made promises to you, that were not kept?  Almost all of us have been disappointed by someone we loved.  But God is completely faithful.  God is 100% trustworthy.   Yet there are times when some of us have felt neglected or abandoned by God.  Maybe an unexpected loss has left you feeling hopeless.  Do you still believe that you can count on God?  We live in a world of great uncertainty and huge changes.  So many promises and guarantees have been broken.  It’s no wonder that some become skeptical, bitter or hard-hearted. 

Lamentations 3:24-26 says,”The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.  The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.”  Can you wait for the Lord?   Can you wait for the One who is loving and faithful?  If you haven’t been trusting the Lord lately, remember, the Lord is GOOD to those whose HOPE is in Him, those who seek Him.  

In a disappointing, uncertain, changing world, let us trust the Lord of heaven and earth.