A Tall Drink of Water

Could you take a minute and grab yourself a glass of water?

 

Maybe you could go to your refrigerator and run water into your glass through a filtered system in your fridge.

Maybe you have bottled water, that will do fine too.

Maybe the Culligan man brings water to your home.

Do you have only tap water and ice?    

 

 

It really doesn't matter, just as long as you have a glass full of water.

Now take a sip.

Ahhh, isn't that good? Do you feel refreshed?

Did you realize that you just did something that thousands of people across the world will never have the opportunity to do? Yes, that sip of water is a privilege, not to be taken lightly.

Now, look at your glass. There is water left over. What a treat it would be for people in impoverished areas around the world whose drinking water is tepid and filled with disease at best.

Our family has recently taken a pledge to pray for the entire world for an entire year and in our first week of prayer we took a serious look at the worlds water supply. It is astonishing to me that so many people groups across the world lack the fundamental element of life that we take for granted. I was also shocked to realize that our water supply is endangered for future generations.

At home we can help in so many simple ways.
~ Finish our glass of water, don't pour out the contents when we have had enough.
~ Take shorter showers.
~ Run the washing machine and dishwasher on shorter cycles.
~ Donate funds to help send clean water to disaster stricken areas and to impoverished lands across the world.
~ Turn the faucet water off while brushing our teeth or washing our hands until time to rinse.

All of these are simple things we can do to conserve and provide a cool refreshing glass of water for those who have none.

Then this thought occurred to me.

You know, as Christians, we have total access on a daily basis to the Water of Life. The water that flows through our souls and cleanses us, revives us and keeps us; yet, thousands will never have a drop of the life giving water...the gospel of Jesus Christ.

What are we doing to take that water to a world that is dying of thirst?
What are we doing to "conserve" the water for future generations?

Here are some ideas.

~ Get involved in your community.
Right where you are there are people who have no hope.
Get involved in a community reading program.
Tutor children who need help after school.
Volunteer in your local soup kitchens, Crisis Pregnancy Centers and the local food bank.

~ Get involved globally.
Instead of spending time on vacation, take the family to a few days on site at Habitat for Humanity.
Take the family on a missions trip. (This does not have to be out of your country. There are many needs right where you are.)

~ Train at home.
The best way I know to teach my children to share the water of life with those around them, is to let them see me doing the same. I can not just tell my children, "Jesus love the little children, all the children of the world..."
I have to show them what that looks like. Training at home, involves getting out of our homes and taking the cool refreshing water of the gospel to those who need it...taking it to them Where They Are!

 

The next time you pour yourself a glass of water would you just take a minute and consider what a privilege that glass of water is. Take a minute and think about those people all over the world who have only tepid, disease infested water to drink. Take a minute to think about how you can share the Life Giving Water with others.

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Resources                                                                                                               ~Physical Water Research, Conservation, and Provision

Filtered Water for Your Home - http://culliganwateroffers.com                                                                                     

Personal Portable Water Filters – http://www.filterwater.com                                                                                               

Clean Water For the World   -   http://cleanwaterfortheworld.org/

Water For The World -  http://purewaterfortheworld.org/

                                                                                                 

~Spiritual Water Resources for Sharing

Operation World  - http://www.operationworld.org/                                                                                                                       

Score International    - http://scoreinternational.org/                                                                                                                     

Samaritans Purse -  http://master.samaritanspurse.org/index.php       

Radical The Book -   http://www.radicalthebook.com/