It doesn’t matter which window in this big old parsonage I choose to gaze out of – what I see are mounds and mounds of water droplets held captive in the form of snow. As I type these words I hear water filling in the rinse cycle of the washing machine. Just a few short hours ago I was cleansed and rejuvenated by hot, steamy water drenching and pulsating in my morning shower. And as ever, my 32 oz. water bottle sits within my easy reach. I promise myself that I will drink two full bottles of water each day. Later, if the weather ever warms up enough, I may take a brisk walk down to the riverfront and watch the ice flows or just gaze out upon the river’s sun glinting ripples. But not today. I have been preparing my sermon all week, turning two Bible stories over and over in my head, both about – you guessed it! – water. Water, water, everywhere!

The first story is about the people of Israel (Exodus 17.1-7) who quarrel incessantly and complained against Moses, their fearless leader. They are thirsty, and in the wilderness water is scarce. God directs Moses to strike the rock of Horeb with his staff, and out gushes enough water to quench everyone’s thirst. The second story is about the Samaritan woman whom Jesus meets at the well (John 4.5-42). Jesus tells her that if she asks he will give her living water, the kind that will become in her a spring of water gushing up to eternal life, a promise that she will never thirst again. As I consider these two stories, I see a common thread. Lack of water produces hardship for those who thirst and for those who are expected to provide it. These stories translate well for those for whom water is hard to come by. I’m sorry; I cannot relate. If anything, I suffer from an over abundance of water! I feel more like the beautiful roses a friend sent me for Valentine’s Day. Each day for over a week I have been careful to follow the florist’s directions to keep the vase filled with fresh warm water. They have lasted beautifully for well over a week, but they are showing signs of certain death. Their delicate petals are drying, separating and curling around the edges, their heavy flower heads are beginning to droop as if to sleep. Surely not replenishing the water would have speeded up the process, yet watering each day cannot sustain them.

Lack of water or over abundance – what’s the point? It is this: in this life, God provides all that we need. Whether we quarrel and complain as we fixate on our physical needs as the Israelites did, or request an easier or more enlightened way as the Samaritan woman asked of Jesus, God hears and tends to our needs. Greater still, it is in Jesus that we find the living water of eternal life, a promise that when our earthly life withers and fades away, we shall be alive forever with Him never to sorrow or hunger or thirst again. We do not deserve it. We cannot earn it. We simply ask through faith in Jesus, the One who bore our sin, who died and rose again, the One who gives us living water that we may never be in want again.