Receive the Living Water
and rekindle hope
‘As the deer longs for streams of water,
so my soul longs for you, O God’ – Psalm 42:2
“My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalm 42:2). This beautiful picture can be totally different from what was experienced by the psalmist. “My tears have been my food day and night” (Psalm 42:4); “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?”; “God my Rock, Why have you forgotten me? (Psalm 42:10).
The two outbreaks are 17 years apart. Yet after all this time and despite advanced technology, we can’t stop viruses from raging again. Our society is much richer than before, but protective gear such as face masks is hard to come by no matter how wealthy you might be, due to the shortage of supplies.
We can always find God in the midst of adversity. Today, God is telling us once again:
“If anyone drinks the water I give, he will never be thirsty. The water I give will be a fountain in him and will flow to eternal life” (John 4:10).
Before we knew God, he placed in store for us his unconditional love. We are fortunate to meet him by the well. He was there before we came and he has been waiting for us to offer him water. The request of Jesus comes from the depths of God’s desire for us to desire him.
I am surprised to have found such a loving Father and I feel endless compassion in his arms. Through his sacrifice, the Son of God teaches us how to attain truth. Through Baptism, the Holy Spirit gives us living water which is infused into the life of our soul to heal us, and renders us forgiven and favoured. From drinking the living water, we are reborn to live a new life to bear fruits of love. The living water unites us with God.
The deer feels thirsty once in a while and needs to look for water from the creek. No matter what it will encounter during the search, it has only one goal and that is water which is the source of its life. What about us? Has our desire for God always been that strong? In our search for and understanding of God, do we have the strong desire and focus of the deer?
Jesus said: “Those who are lacking in God are blessed, because God’s kingdom is for them.” Thus, we should pursue a life of austerity and spiritual wealth. We should not be bewitched by wealth and power. We should cherish and make good use of what is given to us by God and should not take anything for granted. We should acknowledge what is missing in ourselves and understand that humankind needs God.
We should trust Him with all our heart and he will take care of whoever comes into his arms. We place God at the centre of our lives so that we will seek to share love with those who give us love in this world full of changes.
Today, we hear of God’s desire for our desire for him. It is when we express our need for him that living water is transformed into the energy of our life.
I wish I could be as devoted as the deer in my desire for God; I wish to impoverished in God so that there is space in me for his living water; I wish I could flow along the living water with others to reach the fountain of eternal life together.
Lenten Campaign Organising Committee, 2020
