Read the label

O True God, You are my God, the One whom I trust. I seek You with every fiber of my being. In this dry and weary land with no water in sight, my soul is dry and longs for You. My body aches for You, for Your presence.  (Psalm 63:1 VOICE)

Do you ever experience those "dry places" in your walk with Jesus? You know - the times it seems like you read the Bible, but you just don't seem to "hear" him talking to you through it; or you find yourself less than enthused with the sermon, mind wandering to the grocery list.  I think we all get a little "parched" once in a while from the "dry places" we walk through, but what does being "parched" do for us physically?  We look for relief, don't we? We seek refreshment - we want water! Could it be the "dry places" we all experience are really a precursor to something amazingly satisfying just around the corner?

Hunger and thirst create a sense of "yearning" in our souls - driving us to find the place where we will find refreshing.  We might not know what it will be that will bring that "ahhhhh...." kind of refreshing, but we know it when we take it in!  I have watched nature shows that speak of the inward pull of the animals on the arid desert lands finding even the smallest pockets of water on the dry desert floor.  It is as though they can "smell" the water - it draws them because their sense are heightened by their thirst. The same is true with each of us - we are drawn closer to Jesus because of the heightened sense of hunger or thirst we have within.  

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to "fill up" on something because it is easy or convenient?  We reach for the bottle of soda, cold and tingly as we consume it on a hot day, but does it really refresh for all that long?  Not usually - it leaves us "moderately" refreshed, but it isn't like good old fashioned water.  Yesterday, I really wanted a cup of coffee in the morning when I arrived at work. The pot was fresh, my BFF having made it just moments before my arrival, and my cup was at the ready.  As I poured creamer in and took that first big gulp, I was met with a strange taste - something I had been noticing with all the coffee over the past week or so whenever I took a cup.  I haven't said much, but I finally asked why it tasted kind of "weird".  Alas, to my surprise, someone had brought in a pumpkin spice creamer, exactly the same color bottle as my sugar free caramel machiatto creamer I usually use, and I had been putting that one in my cup instead of my usual!  No wonder it tasted odd!

There are a lot of "look alikes" out there promising some kind of fulfillment for us, but only one Jesus.  There are all kinds of places and things to run to when we think we are a little parched and in need of refreshing - but only one "well of living water" from which to draw!  Don't be fooled by the "package" - be sure you are reading the label!  Just sayin!

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