Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13-14)

Read: Deuteronomy 21:10 – 25:19

Relate: This morning I had a mug of dark roast coffee before leaving the house. I’m at a conference at Celebration Church in Jacksonville, FL and since their cafe serves Starbucks, of course I had to have a caramel macchiato as soon as I arrived. Over the course of the day I probably had three maybe four bottles of water that they were giving away while I attended various seminars and sessions. I also had two large glasses of water with lunch and another with dinner. About five minutes before sitting down to write I went to the fridge to grab a can of Dr Pepper. I was thirsty. It is almost gone and I’m fine now, but I can pretty much guarantee I will be thirsty again before going to bed. Even if not, I know I will wake up thirsty.

Thirst is just a fact of life. Just like hunger, it comes and goes. When I satisfy the need, it goes away… for a time. This is true now, it was true two thousand years ago and it will be true into the future for as long as people inhabit the earth. So when Jesus spoke about drinking water that will take away your thirst forever, it almost seems impossible to imagine. Water that will cause you to never thirst is almost as incomprehensible as water that will cause you to never die. The legendary fountain of youth is just that, legendary. Both seem to be a pipe dream that will never come to be.

React: It isn’t only food and drink that only offer a temporary fix. The entertainment industry is built upon the need for something new and better. Call of Duty wasn’t enough. So then it was CoD Modern Warfare. Then CoD Black Ops. The movie we saw last weekend was great but next week _______ is coming out and I’ve just got to see it. It isn’t good enough that Real Madrid is the greatest football team in the sport. They have to keep proving it year in and year out. (And every now and then little upstarts like Chelsea and Barca try to upset the natural order of things). No matter what a person’s passion or hobby is, there will never be enough. Nothing will ever be enough. As the Psalmist says, “My soul finds rest in God alone.” (62:1) He only has the living water. Nothing else will ever satisfy.

Respond: 

God, You alone can satisfy. You alone can quench my thirst. Forgive me for those times I have gone to drink from other cisterns. Over and over I need to relearn that nothing else can satisfy. Help me to drink only from You so I will never thirst again.