One sticky summer afternoon, my kids and I ventured down to the Yellow River to play. We brought along a set of plastic shovels and a bucket and pretended that we were headed to a real beach. We found a quiet spot by the riverside and set to work, digging a little path that led to the river.
As we uncovered rocks and piled them to the side, we tapped into an underground water source. What a fun surprise to see it bubble up and fill the hole we had created. The water even seemed clean when it first appeared—unlike the nearby polluted Yellow River water. Soon we had a miniature “lake” supplied by this underground water source, as we excitedly dug a bigger and bigger hole.
Our original plan was to take turns pouring buckets of river water into our dug-out path to see if it could reach the river. But that route was only temporary, as the water kept running out. Our underground water source allowed our hole to remain filled, and provided us with a symbolic picture of the never-ending source of living water: water that nourishes and quenches real heart thirst. Water that keeps the trees of our lives green and fruit-bearing, even during an extended time of dryness.
“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.
They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7-8, NLT
Oh, to have deep-reaching roots that receive nourishment from the true spring of Living Water. To have no worries during an interminable season of drought. To continually produce green leaves and fresh fruit, regardless of external circumstances. To trust deeply in the Lord—who sometimes brings a flood of abundance but more often than not seems to evaporate the rain clouds from my parched life. To not turn away when His actions or non-actions fail to fit into the box I’ve drawn for Him with lines of self-centered expectations.
I want my thirsty roots to determinedly tunnel their way through the packed dirt of disappointment and discover the never-ending supply of nourishment that only He can provide.
Prevent my leaves from withering up and dying, Oh God. Enable me to voice, no matter what you bring my way, that it is well with my soul.
What passages help you to reflect on God’s nourishment in your times of need?
Some passages that minister to me regarding Living Water and God’s nourishment are: Isaiah 43:18-20, Isaiah 58:11, John 4:1-15, John 7:37-39, John 15:1-8, and Revelation 22:1-2.