Living water…
Many of us do not drink enough water. I realized the problem several years ago. Our body needs plenty of water to operate well and to stay healthy.
As a general guide, one has to drink 8 good sized glasses a day. It is a good habit to drink 2-3 glasses first thing in the morning. First thing I do when I come downstairs in the morning is to drink 2 (sometimes 3) glasses of water on an empty stomach to kick-start the machine. That will give me a head start.
When I feel a slump later in the morning, or feel the urge to snack, I take another glass. One or two glasses with your lunch and you are well on your way. A filled water jug is always visible on our dining room table. A subtle reminder.
Over time, I knew for me drinking water at home came easier than when I was in the office. This is what I did to tackle that minor problem. When I arrive at the office, my flask is waiting for me. It is the first thing I see. So when I arrive at the office, the first thing I do it fill my flask of water. All this is part of habit forming: make it very easy for yourself to do what you intend to do. Then I drink it during the day (when I feel my energy flagging for example) and drink it before I go home.
Little habits like this are easy to integrate and are a great help to live a healthier life. Physical health is essential to help become more resilient.
There are also spiritual angles. Jesus knew what thirst was. In John 4, we see Jesus sitting at a well, tired after a long walk, weary at the hottest time of day. So close to the solution of his thirst, yet seemingly so far out of reach. When he sees a Samaritan woman who came to draw water, he asks her, “Please give me a drink.” A conversation about thirst and water ensues (after all, Jesus ‘had to go that way’ vs 4). The Samaritan woman had searched for her living water in all the wrong places. So Jesus tells her that “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).
No wonder the woman says ‘Sir, give me this water…’, not quite knowing yet what she is asking for, although she perceives her deepest need. By God’s grace, however, Jesus gives her what she needs most. Jesus knows our deepest thirst.
Many of us do not drink enough water. Make it easy for yourself to drink well, to drink deeply, to drink daily. Cheers!
