A well is all wet and rocky at the bottom!

Mom surprised me the other night with her quick response.  It was nearing bedtime, I leaned forward in my chair, simply stating, "Well...."  In quick retort, she spouted, "It is all wet inside there!"  Ha!  I didn't even know she knew the saying!  You know the one I am talking about...someone says "Well" and you respond "It is all wet down there, and rocky, too!"  Today's lesson is a "well" of a different sort.


Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart; a wise person draws from the well within. (Proverbs 20:5 The Message)


So many times we look for answers to the question, "Is this right for me?"  In trying to reason out the response, we sometimes find ourselves drawing from "the well" within - the knowledge we have "saved up" over time.  It comes from having experienced things, storing up the "cause and effect" knowledge which comes from experience.  For instance, we experience disappointment when the ice cream cone melts away while we are doddle in eating it down in the hot Arizona sun.  The next time we purchase one, we might recall the knowledge we formed through the last experience - eating this one much quicker.  This is knowledge formed on understanding the "cause and effect" principle - ice cream is only enjoyed if the sun doesn't melt it first!


Not every lesson we learn comes this easy, does it?  We see a whole lot of "effect", but the "cause" is sometimes quite hidden (at least in our estimation). When this occurs, we might say we did not learn from past experience.  We repeat the failure over and over again.  In time, we might see a little link between cause and effect in our behavior, attitude, ability to resist temptation, etc. - but it comes at a cost we'd rather not have had to endure.


Our passage suggests knowing what is right is like deep water - stored up in the heart to be drawn upon when we need it.  Let's break this down:


- A well is a storage or repository location, much in the same way God expects our hearts to be a storage or repository location for his wisdom.  Knowledge only becomes wisdom when it is applied.  In other words, we have to act upon what we know if it is to affect the "cause".  The heart is really not the physical muscle of circulation in our body - it is the part of our brain which connects will and emotion to every action / reaction we exhibit.  Therefore, every action or reaction is affected by what is stored deep within our "heart".  Storage only occurs when there is regular and consistent input.  A well is renewed when the rains collect - our hearts are renewed when the spirit "rains" afresh in our lives.


- A well is meant to be drawn from, to provide refreshment and renewal.  No one draws from a well to just look at the water.  The water drawn from the well is for a purpose - either we drink it, bathe in it, or use it to water something for future growth.  God expects the knowledge we store up in our "wells" to be used much in the same way.  We can find refreshing for our weary soul in the knowledge of his guidance and comfort in rough times.  There is renewal which is brought to our mind, will and emotions when the knowledge is allowed to wash us and make us clean.  The ability to produce further growth is only possible when what we already store up is used to further this growth.


- A well can be polluted, either through non-use or the introduction of something which has the power to "taint" the waters.  Much in the same way, when knowledge is just taken in, never drawing it out, it becomes stagnant.  The purpose of knowledge is found best in its use.  When we allow "mixed" knowledge to affect us - the type which we don't test against the word of God to examine it for alignment / congruence - we might get a little "tainted" in our application of the knowledge.  It might be applied - but when applied incorrectly, it has a "sour" effect.


Whether we use knowledge because we have come to possess it through experience, or simply as a result of some repeated failure, we are drawing from a well within.  What's in your well?  Is there sufficient drawing from that well to keep it from growing stagnant?  Is there sufficient renewal of the well with a fresh input from the Spirit on a regular and consistent basis?  Is the well as deep as it could be?  Remember, you may "hit water" the first few feet you dig a well - but the most flavorful and purest of water oftentimes is found at the deepest point!  

A well dug well

⁵ Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart;
   a wise person draws from the well within. 

(Proverbs 20:5 The Message)

⁵ Counsel in the heart of man is like water in a deep well, but a man of understanding draws it out.

(Proverbs 20:5 The Amplified Bible)

The digger of a well knows that once water is "hit", he may have to go a little deeper to get a "full-flow" of water.  The best is often hidden the deepest.  The well within is something that must be "tapped" in order to be of benefit to the one who needs its refreshment.  The deeper the well, the fresher the water.  The deeper we "tap into" Jesus, the fresher the source will be of all that we need in dry times.

Dry times are as assured as is the fact that life will one day be over for all of us.  We experience the dryness for lots of reasons - but all have the same end in mind - that we might "tap into" Jesus just a little deeper.  To really understand what it means to know refreshment, one must have experienced "thirst".  Nothing is more appreciated when one is "parched" by the dryness of soul, spirit, or emotion, than the sweet refreshing of the Spirit of God.

Nothing satisfies more than a cool drink on a hot day.  We lavish the coolness of that chilled drink on bodies that are hot, exhausted, and probably a little dehydrated.  In response to the refreshing of that drink, our bodies begin to "perk up" again - feeling re-hydrated for the journey ahead.  There is something pretty awesome about being spiritually "re-hydrated"!  If you are in a dry place today, the Spirit of God stands ready to lavish his refreshment upon you - that which comes from the well deep within.

I think the dehydrating things of life are as varied as we are individuals.  Anything in life can suck the energy right out of us.  Whenever we fail to "spiritually re-hydrate", we run the risk of spiritual weakness, anxiety, doubt, and hopelessness.  The "well within" is a cultivated source of strength.  It is during times of "taking in" what God gives that we refill our storehouses for the drier seasons of our lives.  A well that never "takes in" in sufficient quantities to "store up" is really not a well at all.

We need these times of dryness in order that we might "tap deeper" - so we can count on them coming.  If we go too long without "tapping a little deeper" into Jesus, we may find ourselves feeling a little parched in the spiritual sense.  A dry well is of no value to the one who need refreshing.  The well must be kept flowing - God's call today is to "tap a little deeper".  Our part in the process is to take a little time to "drill into" what God has already provided for our source of refreshment.

Well dug wells are like a fountain of vitality.  The wise know where to dig, how deep the next "find" will be, and they don't stop until they reach that point.  If you find the well a little dry today, perhaps it is time to "take in" a little more until those storehouses of God's refreshment are refilled and re-cultivated!

Behold the face of your pursuer

 ^1-3 God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing. You have bedded me down in lush meadows, you find me quiet pools to drink from. True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction. ⁴ Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I'm not afraid when you walk at my side.  Your trusty shepherd's crook makes me feel secure.  ⁵ You serve me a six-course dinner
      right in front of my enemies. You revive my drooping head; my cup brims with blessing. ⁶ Your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life. I'm back home in the house of God for the rest of my life.

(Psalm 23)

Most of us are familiar with the words of this Psalm because we have heard them at a funeral or during some other time of distressing occurrence.  Yet, these words are significant in times of "life", not just in times of "death".  The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want...

We have an authority over our lives - the shepherd is the one "leading" the sheep, "directing" them, and "providing" for them.  A leader sets the way, a person in charge of directing gives wisdom and insight, and a provider makes every need his priority.  David reminds us that when God is in this place in our lives, we don't need anything else!  

You lead me beside still waters - bedding us down, providing us with rest for our weary souls.  All the world hurls at us daily serves to wear us down - it sucks energy from our souls, occupies precious space in our thoughts, and entangles us in its grasp.  Still waters run deep - there is a refreshing that comes when we partake of what God provides for our restoration.  

You restore my soul - true to his word, he gives us time to catch our breath.  I cannot count the times when life was throwing stuff at me so fast that I physically, mentally, and emotionally did not feel like I could ever come up for air.  The pressures mounted and the fears entered in - that is the natural outcome when pressures mount and we are left trying to lead ourselves through the many pressures we face.  David gives us some insight here - go to where God is leading you - there you find rest.  

The worst thing we can do is to believe that we are too busy to take time for God, to allow him to refresh our weary souls.  God delights in "giving us space" and "giving us time" to really refocus our lives.  It is there that God gives us the sense that he is "alongside" us in our struggles.  When we sense his presence, there is a renewed confidence that we shall come out on the opposite of the troubling circumstances with our head held high, our minds at peace, our energies renewed, and our faith built strong.

That last verse reminds us of God's unending love for us - his faithfulness to pursue us every step of the way.  He "chases after us" - we don't chase after him.  What a sad fact, but truth nonetheless.  He is the one pursuing us - so that his love may affect us deeply and his grace may embrace us closely.  We don't know the many times when God's pursuit was initiated in our lives by the "wrong turns" we took along the way, but a shepherd is ever-alert to the many wanderings of his sheep.

This is not a "death psalm" - it is the Psalm of Life.  It is about God's pursuing love, engaging us in his restorative provision, renewing us for the next challenge we face.  Life is found in his arms, in the nudges of his shepherd's rod, and in his quiet places.  Renewal is around the corner - you are being pursued - stop, listen, and behold the face of your pursuer.

Come into refreshing

Jesus said, "Come off by yourselves; let's take a break and get a little rest." For there was constant coming and going. They didn't even have time to eat.

(Mark 6:31)

¹⁶ The LORD’s justice will dwell in the desert, his righteousness live in the fertile field. ¹⁷ The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. ¹⁸ My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. 

(Isaiah 32:16-18)

We live such busy lives, pursuing all kinds of avenues of interest and demand, seldom realizing just how much of our bodies, souls, and spirits are being depleted in the process.  Our invitation today is to come into a place of refreshing - the place where the Spirit of the Lord dwells.  It is there that we will find the refreshment of body, soul and spirit.

To be refreshed means that we find new vigor or energy by rest.  In our first passage today, the disciples had been out healing the sick, casting out demons and were returning back to Jesus to share the many stories of their journeys.  Jesus knows the limits of the physical body - instructing them to take time to get a little rest.  You can only go at an "amped up" physical pace for so long - then the body will rebel.  It needs physical, emotional, and mental rest in order to restore the energy it needs for that type of activity.  Jesus was instructing them to take time to make themselves "fresh" again.

A freshness of spirit comes in taking time to get alone with Jesus.  A freshness of body requires taking care of it by adequate rest, nourishing food, and the right amount of activity to keep it physically fit.  Freshness of mind is something that we often overlook.  When we neglect re-energizing our minds, we get burned out.  God does more than provide for our spirit and body - he also provides for our minds.  Mental "health" is achieved in keeping balance in our lives - allowing mind to meditate of things that build up and restore in sufficient amounts that there is balance maintained.

God's promises to Israel were that they would dwell with a righteous God.  The fruit of living with a righteous God is peace, quietness of spirit, and confidence of mind.  God's intent was that we would live in undisturbed places of rest.  In other words, not affected by what the world was hurling our way.  How on earth do we ever get to that place of undisturbed rest?  It almost seems impossible.

Did you know that one of the outcomes of "rest" is to be reinvigorated?  We think of rest as the ceasing of activity - God's desire is that we cease our activity and allow him to show us his activity!  That is were we find rest - in stopping our activity long enough to acknowledge his.  In doing this, we bring honor to the one who requires to place of "center-focus" in our lives.

The invitation to come into a place of refreshing is really a call to cease from our own striving - striving to overcome sin, striving to live better, striving to keep it all together, striving to be perfect.  The enjoyment of the place of rest is that we are enlivened by the Holy Spirit - rejuvenated at the core of our being.  The passage from Isaiah has a key to this "ceasing".  Don't just scan over it or you will miss it.  

"The effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever!"  In other words, the effect of dwelling in the presence of a righteous God is that his righteousness will affect us.  The affect is quietness and confidence.  Quietness of mind and confidence of spirit are end-products of dwelling in the presence of God - taking time to get alone with him often enough and long enough to be affected by his righteousness.  

The next time you feel like you are "over the edge" in living life - come into refreshing.  Your life thrives best where there is balance.  If you are out of balance, you're in a place of danger.  Just as a washing machine rocks, bangs, and clangs when it is "out of balance", so your mind, emotions, and body will go through all kinds of needless gyrations, not fully accomplishing the purpose for which they were created.  It is only when we are "in balance" that we can accomplish what we were created to accomplish.

The invitation is to come into refreshing - get balance in your life once again!