You’re stranded in the desert and you are hot, exhausted, and dehydrated. You finally reach a well that is full of cold water. You take the bucket and get some out. You take your first sip and it’s amazing. That sip of water wets your dry lips and you can’t think of anything you would rather have. And yet after that sip you put the bucket down. You have full access to the rest of the water in the bucket and then unlimited water in the well. That first sip was everything you’ve been longing for, but still you sit the bucket down. You never have to be thirsty again but you chose to only take sips when you get back to the point of severe dehydration.
I’m new at receiving these analogies, but hopefully you get it. God is everything we long for and when we taste and see how good He is its undeniable, but we keep taking sporadic sips instead of taking advantage of the goodness we’ve been freely given.
These past two months I have drawn closer to God and I’m seeking Him, and as I spend more time with Him I’m realizing how much time I spend not seeking Him. Last night, Lauren and I went to a gym that is about a mile away from the school we’re living in. We were getting ready to leave and we look outside to see it pouring. We had just showered there and felt clean for the first time all day, and we knew we were going to be sopping wet by the time we got back. After a few minutes of trying to check the weather online and complaining about how unlucky the timing was, we reached the decision that trying to wait it out might take hours, so we headed out.
Within three minutes of walking a taxi pulled up and a woman rolled down her window and asked us if we needed a ride. We hopped in and a couple who were on vacation shared their taxi with us for the mile and we were dropped off right by our school. After the fact, Lauren and I realized how God had blessed us with that ride, and it occurred to me that neither of us had thought at all tot take our little ordeal to God. We didn’t pray for the rain to let up, we didn’t pray for a ride, we didn’t pray for safety on the walk home in the rain.
Another moment God used to reiterate His point to me was this morning when I woke up and the first thought that popped in my head was that I should check Facebook. I was about to pick up my phone and then God gently said, “How about spending some time with me?” I closed my eyes again and began to pray. The amount of rest and peace I felt from being in His presence was amazing.
So it kind of baffles me. I see God be faithful over and over again. I feel God’s goodness time after time. And yet I so easily forget to go to Him in very situation and replenish my soul with His presence. God has used the past 24 hours to say to me repeatedly, “Don’t forget about me.” God wants our everything. He wants our love, our time, and our burdens. He’s jealous for us. So what I’m working on these days is in every moment, intentionally giving Him control and full reign in my heart and mind.
