“For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children.” Isaiah 44:3
Last week, Hurricane Helena slammed into the Florida coast before making its way into the interior terrain of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The magnitude of the devastation is still being determined, and the death toll continues to rise. A no-name storm called PTC 8 (Potential Tropical Cyclone 8) buried Carolina Beach, NC, and flooded roads around the area just weeks earlier. Our county remains under a flood watch from the no-name storm that engulfed us over two weeks ago. A friend who lives in Carolina Beach texted me periodically to report that she was still safe, sending pictures and giving praise that her home remained dry. During one of our exchanges, I was reminded that I had met fellow Christians who believe the story of Noah and the Ark is purely fictional because they think it’s meteorologically impossible. The statistical report from this one-day storm proves Noah’s account of the flood is decisively possible. During PTC 8, twenty inches of rain fell in only twelve hours. That is equivalent to 952 million gallons of water weighing 8.34 billion pounds. Watching the devastation unfold on TV and the amount of rain falling from the skies outside my windows, even if I didn’t believe in the infallible truth of the Bible, I would undoubtedly have to succumb to the fact that the earth could be swallowed by water.
These are two recent events in which flowing water, not stagnant water, has destroyed and reshaped not only the landscape but also the lives of thousands of people. Flowing water is living water; it doesn’t stand still. Have you ever stood on the shoreline of the ocean or along the banks of the river and been mesmerized by the life of water? It ebbs and flows with the rhythm of the earth. Much of the planet’s landscape has been formed by flowing water breaking down and destroying almost any barrier, including rock. Ironically, the same element that can devastate and destroy also gives us life and maintains our lives.
Jesus says that whoever believes in Him may come and drink, and out of us will flow streams of living water from our hearts (John 7:38). This living water is the Holy Spirit given to us at salvation. John 4:13 describes it as a “fresh, bubbling spring within, giving eternal life.” Living water, water that flows cannot be stopped- mountains, rock, and manmade concrete all have the potential to crumble. It has the victory. The living water within us has the same potential. By the power of the Holy Spirit, strongholds of the heart are broken, the power of the flesh is eroded, and the blood of Jesus Christ completely covers Satan’s condemnation. The living water radically and irreversibly changes the landscape of our lives.
Amazingly, this living water flows from us. Jesus Christ, the source of the living water, flows out from us to a dead and dying world. He chose us as His instruments here on earth. We are broken, flawed, and weak, but the Spirit within us gives us power, strength, and perseverance to proclaim His name and offer the opportunity to drink from the Living Water. Eugene Peterson interprets the words of Jesus in Matthew 5:13 this way, “Let me tell you why you are here-We are here, on earth, right now, wherever you are living, with whomever you are connected, to be the flavor, the color, the fragrance and the living power of God. You are called to be a Kingdom man or woman who releases the Kingdom of God into the kingdom of the world for His glory and to accomplish His essential purpose-the restoration of His creation, including all those who are made in His image.” We are here to share the Living Water. And that’s your Tuesday Tidbit.
The picture is of Carolina Beach, NC, during PTC 8.