Stay Thirsty My Friend

One of my favorite TV commercials features 'the most interesting man in the world'. The commercials always end with him saying, "Stay thirsty my friend." That is why I like it. We need to remind ourselves to stay thirsty or we will become complacent.

In Jn 4:13, Jesus says, “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.” This brings up the question, "Since this verse says we will never thirst again, why do we need to stay thirsty?" This is a good question.

If we would but admit it, we ourselves still get thirsty. Maybe we, just as the 'woman at the well', do not really understand what Jesus was saying to her. Her response to Him was, "Sir, give me this water, so that I may never get thirsty nor have to come [continually all the way] here to draw." She thought He was offering her something to make her life easier, when in reality, He was offering her something that would make her life better. She thought He was talking about water from the well; He was talking about the things she was doing to try to satisfy her empty life. She thought she would not have to make the trip to the well any longer; He was telling her she would not have to go to the broken cistern any longer that she was drinking from to try and give meaning to her life. She thought He was talking to her about coming to the well to get water: He was talking to her about a different well, a different source, a different drinking, a different life.

When we drink the water that only Jesus can give us we will never thirst again, but because we have access to the Rock from which the spiritual water that produces spiritual life gushes, but we still have to drink ... regularly

Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life." (Jn :13-14)

Stay thirsty my friend!

Giving Our Lives Away

If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don't push your way to the front; don't sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don't be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand. (Php 2:1-4 MSG)

Yesterday, I spoke with a man a  who is a teacher's assistant at a handicap school, tutors middle school kids after school, and spends his summers helping at a summer camp for youth. My comment to my wife was, "He is giving his life away."

Of course this begs the question, How am I giving my life away?

My first thoughts were along the lines of  Well, what is giving my life away?  sounding strangely familiar to the question of Who is my neighbor?  If we have to qualify what giving our lives away is, then we haven't gotten to where we need to be yet - wrong attitude, wrong thinking, wrong question.  A better question would be How can I give my life away today.

I remember a song Steven Curtis Chapman used to do called "My Turn Now":

My Turn Now Lyrics

Well it's my turn now
My turn now
Hey, my turn to give my life away
I close the book and I shake my head
Sometimes I can't believe the things I've read
I don't deserve what He did for me
Hey, hey


He gave His love and His life away
And now He's asking me to do the same
So I'm gonna give Him all I am
And all I ever hope to be 'cause

Chorus
It's my turn now
Well it's my turn now
My turn to give my life away

I open up the book and look again
I read the stories of the faithful men
Who gave up all they had to follow Him
Yeah, yeah

He used the strong and He used the weak
He even gave the timid words to speak
He called whoever listened then
And now His call goes out again
Chorus

Bridge


My turn to say "I love Him"
My turn to let Him know
My life is His, so where He leads me that's where I will go
Chorus

Let's keep asking ourselves ... How can I give my life away today?

Let's keep noticing and being inspired by those who are giving their lives away.

The rest of Philippians 2 gives us the answer to having a right attitude so that when we ask the right question, we will have the right response.