Why Water?

Jesus called himself “Living Water.” Why would he pick that phrase to describe himself?

I’ll share a few thoughts, along with a few videos I took on a short jaunt through the woods in New Hampshire last week.

Peaceful Streams

Think of how listening to a stream, or fountain in the middle of the city, makes you feel (besides having to visit the bathroom, hehe!).

Does it calm you down? Bring a sense of peace, a feeling that all is going to be okay even if it doesn’t look like it will be today?

Isaiah prophesied Jesus’ coming, and called him the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). When you’re feeling overwhelmed and completely stressed out, it’s time to visit with Jesus, the Fountain of Peace!

I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Jesus, in John 14:27 NLT

Water brings life

I left a few potted plants on my back deck for a week while we were on vacation, with no water supply. They looked amazingly . . . dead when I returned! But just to be sure, I soaked them in the shower when we got home, and the difference today is stark.

Most of my herb garden looks like nothing happened at all (except the thyme, which got so dry I could probably put it up in my spice cabinet). Half my fuschia bounced back, while the other half is still deciding on whether to give up the ghost or fight to live.

Without H₂O, we’re physically dead. Without Jesus, we can spiritually dry up just like that poor thyme. Thankfully, we’re more likely to bounce back like the parsley once we’ve spent some time soaking in his streams of living water!

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Jesus, in John 10:10 ESV

Water Purifies

I know many of us have gotten overly familiar with hand sanitizer in the course of the last few years. Ewww, germies everywhere!

I’m not actually a fan of it. It might kill the germs, but all it does with dirt is spread it around on my hands. To clean my hands, I need soap and water.

We can try on our own to be really, really, really good people. But our hearts tell a different story, often even deceiving us about our true desires and motivations. We’ll never reach perfection, nor will we ever attain the perfection that God requires of us.

So what are we to do?

Jesus provided the answer to our hidden (and sometimes not-so-hidden) grime. As God’s Son, Jesus came to wash it all away.

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

Jesus, in John 3:16-17 NLT

We can be clean, purified inside and out by what Jesus has done for us.

Jesus called himself the Living Water. He provides life, purity and peace. There’s more, I know!

What does Living Water mean to you? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!