Photo by bradford zak on Unsplash
We’ve seen the deserts and places of drought. Our mouths are very acquainted with the sensation of thirst. Every cell in our body knows this primal desire. The wells we’ve seen on the mission field or in the documentary tell the story of women and children walking far for a few gallons of water. When elders in the community make plans, gather tools, and make arrangements for equipment, the community comes together and digs deep. Anticipation grows as they share the work.
Soul Longing — “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalm 42:1-2 ESV) What do you keep returning to when everything runs dry?
Outward Overflow — “On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive.” (John 7:38-39a ESV) Where is something good flowing from you because of grace?
Spiritual Move: Breath Prayer — The practice of bringing the breath in line with simple prayer words, as you breathe in, receive grace, as you breathe out, release tension and control. This rhythm, in and out, lets your body become an act of worship and confession. “Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” (Genesis 2:7 ESV)