A Sip of Salvation … A Thirst for Life by Anna M. Ross
“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said: Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.” —John 7: 37-39
Water is both essential for survival and the essence of salvation. A five-lettered word of such importance that it appears in the Bible 722 times, mentioned more than faith, hope, worship, even prayer. Water is an inorganic compound that transcends science to speak to the soul; a symbol of purification and promise common to all faiths and cultures. It’s worth for existence is more powerful than love. The juxtaposition of heaven and earth manifests itself with water. From the skies, the rain and snow fall to cover, to cool; from the earth, water seeps and collects to nourish, to cleanse. Some places often get too much rain, others far too little. But for God in heaven and Jesus on earth, the Holy Spirit joins the two to become one in salvation. The living water that Jesus spoke of to the woman at the well, is as essential to one’s being as the lifegiving water that all human beings must have to survive. Water creates images of pleasure, idioms that touch and tease: a drop of kindness, a splash of color, a roar of laughter, a wave of emotion; the clichés of being wet behind the ears, raining cats and dogs, leading a horse to water. Water is tapped and pumped, drained and poured. It comes in many forms yet remains unique to each form: the snowflake, the raindrop, the ocean wave.
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Faith Afire • Summer 2022
