Mayim Chayim

To be completely honest, I wasn’t sure what I was going to write for today’s blog. We’ve seen, learned, and experienced so much over the last few days that this task is beyond daunting. So, for your viewing pleasure, I’m just going to wing this thing. The title of this entry translates to “Living water.” Today, I learned that living water isn’t just a “thing,” it’s an EXPERIENCE and embodiment. Okay, now let’s break this bad boy down and see what we come up with.

The Bible says in John 7:38, “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” Today I was able to experience the physical aspects of what living water is at the end of our venture through En Gedi. The final destination was a magnificent waterfall. When I say magnificent, I mean MAGNIFICENT people! After hiking in 108 degree weather, climbing in high altitudes, sweating profusely through our clothes, etc. (hopefully you get the horrifying stanky picture), we reached our living water and were able to stand under the waterfall. I’ve never felt a form of relief like this. It was perfect. The water was crystal clear, had the perfect balance of temperature (not too hot, not too cold), and refreshed us enough to replenish our strength in order to move forward and hike back out.

Having said all of this, I was challenged with something that resonated with me, what does it look like for US to be living water? Let’s take a look back at my previous description of the waterfall. The water was crystal clear, we could see every single rock on the river bed perfectly. We didn’t have to question what was beneath the surface of the water whatsoever. THIS is exactly what we are called to be for those longing to be filled with living water. We need to be genuinely authentic. How do we do that? Well, I believe what it comes down to is making the choice to allow ourselves to be vulnerable to the deepest depths of who we are: the good, the bad, and the ugly. How can we possibly expect others to be vulnerable with us if we first choose not to be authentic with them? The answer is simple, we can’t. And beyond that even, we ourselves won’t go to others with full confidence or trust if we know that we’ve put up our own facades. We’ll jut expect that everyone else does the same thing because of our subconscious egocentricities. Forget the “I have my life together” nonsense, or the “Well I don’t want them to think differently of me- blah blah blah” stuff. That’s unhealthy. In fact, I believe it’s the worst kind of relational unhealthy we’ll find. We all have problems. We all get mad at God sometimes. We all have seasons when we straight up do a horrible job at life. Because of all the ugliness we all go through, we NEED each other. So, be crystal clear in who we are and share it. Sharing is caring. BAM. All right the first step is covered.

Moving forward, the second description of the water had to do with its balanced temperature. We as individuals need to be balanced in how we listen to those who are longing to be filled. I feel as though the key to this is a lot of prayer, seeking God, and asking HIM to give us the words to say. Without Him, we are completely incapable of being living water, because He IS the living water. We must be ACTIVELY mindful of His direction, and we need to keep our emotions in check. We all come with some serious baggage that needs to be worked through. Becoming enraged, or worse, apathetic, will suck any life that’s left out of an individual. Let’s not do that. Instead, let’s engage in every single word they are say and allow them to express their emotions without reservation. Scary stuff, right? It can be so easy for us to sit as we “listen” to someone and think, “How dare they?! How could they have done something like this?!” Or get angry about pain inflicted by someone else on a person we love. On the opposite end of the spectrum, apathy is a nasty parasite. I know I’ve caught myself in the comparison game of life. I hate admitting this, but I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve sat while someone is telling me about a hard time in their life and all I’m thinking is, “Oh my gosh this isn’t even that serious. I’ve been through way worse things than that and look at me, I’m fine. Just suck it up.” All I will say is that during those times I was no good to the individual’s spirit. In fact, I was toxic because of my issues, not theirs. That being said, let’s prayerfully ask God work through us in order point others to Him, allowing Him to be the antidote in their lives. Cool? Stick with me we’re almost done!

Wrapping things up, let’s take a look at the first portion of the original passage from the Bible. It says, “Whoever believes in me.” This is the key to being vulnerable and well balanced as we lead others to The Living Water. BELIEVING IN HIM. If we allow Him to take control of our lives, He WILL use us as vessels filled with His living water to replenish the souls of those around us. This isn’t a “maybe,” it’s a PROMISE. After all, He made us for Himself and His kingdom. Now, let’s go out be the embodiment of living water!

- Quinn McGill