July 13th
But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:14 NKJV
Living water is something that all of us need to survive. A lack of living water can cause symptoms of “spiritual deadness.” If you’re feeling spiritually dead, God offers hope to restore your supply channels to his living water.
The source of this living water is God’s Spirit, symbolized in the Bible by a river. John wrote, “Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:1-2 NASB).
Our spirits are like streams branching off God’s river. His river keeps life flowing through our spiritual veins and washes away impurities. His water satisfies us in a special way. Drinking the living water brings contentment (John 4:14). It nourishes and heals us, enabling us to be fruitful for God. It causes new springs of living water to well up in us, flowing into the lives of people around us. Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38 NKJV).
Sin restricts our water supply from God’s river. Like floating debris that gets caught in rocks or shallow places, sin obstructs the Spirit’s flow through us. When the living water is not flowing deeply through our soul, we can begin to feel spiritually dry. If we don’t remove the sin through confession and repentance, the blockage may increase as we fall further into sin. As more and more debris gets caught in our snag, the results could be catastrophic. We might start falling to every little temptation that comes our way or even turn away from God completely.
Even though we may have allowed sin to clog our water supply, God will help us re-tap into the living water of the Holy Spirit and become fruitful in him again. Here are some actions to take to reopen the water supply and to stay clear of the snags of sin:
- If you have a current blockage, humble yourself, confess the sin to God, ask for forgiveness and ask God to flood your soul with his living water (see Deal with Sin)
- Stay tapped into the water source: Some examples include fellowship in a living church, fill your mind with God’s Word and reset your mind on the Lord each day through prayer and worship. These are ways to “sow to the Spirit” instead of sowing to the lusts of our flesh (Galatians 6:8).
- Take steps to keep your stream free of debris – don’t make provision for satisfying lusts, don’t allow unconfessed sin to remain. As soon as you realize you’ve sinned, approach God and ask his forgiveness.
- Ask God to help you recognize the triggers that typically lead you into temptation so that you can take evasive action.
Questions for further thought:
What other analogy did Jesus use to illustrate the need for us to be tapped into God’s power source for life? (John 15:5)
How are living in sin and eating junk food similar?
What are some daily habits you can foster to help you stay tapped into God?
Prayer:
“Lord God, Thank you for giving me the pure water source of your Spirit. Please forgive me for the sin that I’ve allowed to clog my water supply. I confess my sin of __________ and repent from it now. Please cleanse me and reopen my supply of living water. Please revive me according to your word. I present my body, soul and spirit as instruments of righteousness today. May I bear good fruit acceptable to you and useful for your kingdom. I praise you, Father! In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.”