Living Water

I think it probably goes without saying that life in Lesotho looks a lot different than life in the U.S. Cultural differences aside there are all sorts of little things I do here on a daily basis that I don't do in the States. It's the difference of living in a first-world country vs. a third-world country. It's not bad, just different.

One of the greatest hassles of living here is having to filter water. Just by looking at the tap water (usually) you wouldn't know there was bacteria in it. For the most part it runs clear and looks refreshing. At this point my system is probably used to it and I could most likely drink it straight from the tap without being sentenced to a week in the bathroom. Better to be safe than sorry, though, right?  I really shouldn't complain because we have filters in our houses, so we don't have to boil water or run it through a coffee filter. At the same time, though, when all I want is a glass of water and the water jugs are empty it's just plain annoying.

A few weeks ago I was, once again, filling the water jugs in my house when I was reminded of the story of the woman at the well in John 4:

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, "will you give me a drink?" (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food). 
The Samaritan woman said to him, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans). 
Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." 
"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?" 
Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." 
The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."
Verses 7-15

As I watched the water slowly fill up the jug it hit me that I was just like the Samaritan woman. My constant refilling the water jugs suddenly became an analogy for other parts of my life. So often I keep returning to different wells in order to draw up things that I hope will fulfill and sustain me, only to have to return again and again and again. I'm never satisfied. My thirst is never quenched. When I try and live out my life my own way, by my own power, I'm always disappointed. Like the woman at the well, I question Jesus and doubt that he can do what he says he can do.

But the beauty is that Jesus CAN do what he says he will do. He doesn't need any equipment to draw living water out of the well because he is the living water. Jesus doesn't offer us some external item; he offers himself. This is the truth of what we've just celebrated this past weekend. Jesus offered himself upon the cross as THE sacrificial lamb. He was and is the end all, be all, once and for all propitiation for our sins. He casts our sin as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12) and the Father sees us as pure and blameless. Jesus died so that we may have life. But the Jesus I serve is even more powerful than that! He didn't stop there! He defeated death and rose from the grave with new and eternal life so that we too might have eternal life, new life. The journey from Palm Sunday to Resurrection Sunday is the fulfillment of the promise Jesus makes at that well in John 4. He died and rose again to give us that living water, to give us himself, in such a way that it will never ever ever run out.

Now as I refill the water jugs in my house and enjoy a cold, refreshing glass of water I remember, even though physically I will thirst again, spiritually my thirst has been quenched because of my Jesus, the living water that will never run dry. Hallelujah!

Good Food and Good Company

Yesterday I was just having a day. It wasn't a bad day, but it wasn't a particularly great one either. I woke up tired and felt pretty lethargic most of the day. I felt like I was hitting the proverbial wall. Since we have a team here right now that wasn't good. And, unfortunately, they noticed. I had a couple of the team members ask if I was feeling alright. I was fine, but I was spent. Earlier in the day I was trying to learn a couple new worship songs for evening devotions and I just couldn't get them right. I couldn't focus. And it really frustrated me. In hindsight I realize I was no longer practicing as a means of worshiping the Lord, but because it was part of my job. I felt like I had given everything I had and for some reason I wasn't getting recharged. Honestly, when it came time to head over for dinner and Family Time I was wishing I was heading for bed instead.
That is, until we had dinner. Oh my word, never in my life have I so vividly experienced the power good food and good company can have on one's attitude and outlook. The team that is here right now is from Mississippi. One of the women, in addition to serving us here at Beautiful Gate, is serving the team as the chef. And last night she made gumbo. To put it mildly, it was one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth. The food I've eaten with this team alone could turn me southern. More than that, though, this team is the epitome of "southern hospitality." They came to BG with a heart and a vision for serving the kids, as most teams do, but once here, they caught an even bigger vision. While they love playing with the kids, I've witnessed them blessing our house mothers with personal prayers and shoulder massages. They've taken the time to pour into our volunteers because they see how exhausted many of us are. They have blessed us with the gift of new swing sets on our playground, but one team member in particular went beyond that and spent time praying over the swings and literally writing Scripture into the wet concrete. They realize that coming to Lesotho, coming to Beautiful Gate isn't about getting a pat on the back. It's not about adding new stamps in their passports. In the end, it's not even about serving an orphan, a widow, or a tired missionary. They're here to serve God, to bring Him glory through their actions, to shed light on who He is and point others toward Him. They just get it.
As I was eating that delicious gumbo and sharing in fellowship with the team my spirit was rejuvenated. I physically felt more alert, more alive than I had just moments before. I felt more in tune with my Abba because my brothers and sisters were pointing me back to Him simply by serving a meal and sharing their hearts. That is what fellowship is all about. There doesn't have to be an elaborate planned out event with specific goals outlined and professional speakers for your spirit to be refreshed and grown. God made humans (plural) for a reason. He made us to be in community with Himself and with one another. After last night, my spirit is hungry and yearning for more. More time spent with my Papa. More time spent with my brothers and sisters. More time sharing our hearts and how we've seen God working, but also more time telling jokes and stories. All in all, I long for more time doing life with people who are seeking God together and encouraging one another along the way.