At one time, my daughter taught at a Christian school in South Korea.  My wife went to visit her for a week, and the itinerary included a trip to her local church.   My wife brought me a church bulletin as a souvenir.  Whoopee!

I actually read the bulletin which was written in both Korean and English.  Advertised in it was an upcoming retreat.  Included were three pictures with a compelling caption beneath each one.  Keep in mind, however, that the captions were Korean ideas, translated into English.

There was a picture of a mountain and beneath, it said, “Breathtaking Mountain Scenery.”  There was a second picture of some asphalt.  The caption said, “Basketball Courts NOT made of dirt.”  Hey, that’s exciting. 

The third picture was of a pond.  The caption said, “Pond with real water!”  Hmm, it makes you curious about the ponds filled with fake water.

Pond or not, real water is essential to our lives!

Water lubricates our joints, cushions tissues, and protects organs.   It transports nutrition and flushes out toxins.  It keeps our brains humming and our skin plump and healthy.  It supports our immune system, improves our mood, and reduces the risk of chronic diseases.

I must confess, however, that I prefer soda over water. Soda is mostly water anyway, so why not?

Yes, soda is mostly water, but the additives compromise and even reverse the benefits that pure water brings. 

Soda does not provide the essential minerals and vitamins. Sugar makes us fat and gives us cancer, diabetes and inflammation.  The sweeteners are linked to negative health effects.  Caffeine causes the body to drain off the water already stored in our bodies and so on. 

But here’s the crazy thing.  The experts say that a glass of soda is 90-99% water.  But that remaining 1% turns a soda into a health hazard.

This causes me to wonder about the water Jesus’ offers.

He challenged throngs of worshippers at the temple saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink” – John 7:37-38.  

This is to say that there is water for us to drink that the Lord provides.  He used that figure of speech to let us know that His water does for our spiritual existence what H2O does for our material state. 

Because God is holy, His water is also holy and 100% pure.  And it really and truly does for us what the Lord promised.  It gives and sustains an effervescent spiritual vitality within us. 

But silly me – sometimes I substitute his water for soda. 

I tell myself, “I need Jesus plus “blank” to be happy.”   I need the 99% that Jesus gives but I also need my IRA to grow, or I need to be in charge at work, or I need my kids to adore me, or I need a new bass boat.  

And it’s that added 1% that we strive to have, that steals the joy of knowing and serving Jesus.  It ends up stripping us of any satisfaction.  A little bit of compromise makes a catastrophic difference.

We need to drink deeply and exclusively of the water Jesus gives.

They say we can live only 3-4 days without water intake.  Which is why my daughter carries around a Stanley cup that is big enough to hydrate a camel.  Jesus, however, supplies us with an inexhaustible supply (John 4:13-14). 

Bottled water can be pricey, but Jesus said, “To the one who is thirsty I will give water free of charge” – Revelation 21:6.

When I was a kid, we would run around on a hot summer day.  If we got thirsty, we would pick out a house nearby, grab their garden hose and drink.   It satisfied us even though it had kind of rubbery taste.

There’s no after taste with Jesus.  So, drink deeply!

A PRAYER: Lord, please help me identify that 1% 

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you

Scripture passages are from the NETBible®