During the late 80's, there was an extended period of drought in western Kansas while we were living and working in that area. It got so bad that there were bad dust storms that would be large enough to cause roads to be closed for lack of visibility. I remember one day in particular when I couldn't see from the church door to the curb 20-30 yards away. Wells started to go dry; ranchers were trucking water to cattle and irrigating was out of the question.
The water pressure was so low in town, I remember turning on the tap to fill a picture for ice tea and leaving it to fill while I went and did other things --- it took a long time! I don't think I have ever been as aware of making choices about water use as I was during that time. Water use was so restricted that it affected personal and household use; you even had to order water to get some in a restaurant. A large parking lot in the nearby city of Hays was turned into a sea of toilets when the city made water-saving toilets mandatory. There was at least one household who gave up, paved the yard with concrete and painted it green!
It sounds like we had bad water problems but someone I met at a water conference put it in perspective. She ran water management for a large west-coast city. She said that when people complained to her about water restriction, she showed them a picture on her wall of a young girl carrying a large can of water on her head. "Now she has a water problem", she would respond. For most of the women of the world, the average walk to get water to use is 6 kilometers or 3.7 miles, one way. And often, that water is not clean or safe to drink which kills millions of people. Seventy percent of our planet is covered in water but about one percent is fresh water. Knowing this, I have consciously tried to keep aware of my water use, to save and conserve what I can. We cannot survive without water.
We also cannot live without God who gives us both life and water. The Bible is full of water stories with a keen awareness of how dependent life is upon wells and wadis. The prayer Martin Luther wrote to be used at baptisms is nick-named the "flood prayer" because it talks about many of the water stories in the Bible including the flood of Noah and the ark fame.
We need to take water seriously both physically and spiritually. In the book of Jeremiah, God speaks of being the "living water" that people have forsaken (Jeremiah 2:13). When Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well, he tells her that if she knew who he was, she would ask him for a drink and he would have given her living water. (John 4:10) Now, living water is water that runs clear, free of the kind of toxic algae blooms and other contaminants that can make standing water poisonous. How wonderful if Jesus would give her close and easy access to such water! But the water that Jesus offers is the water that washes her and us clean from sin and gives the gift of eternal life. This is powerful water.
In the face of the ongoing disaster of the oil spill in the Gulf, it is easy to feel like weeping. Day after day the news gets worse and we watch with the world seemingly helpless to make it end. It can be overwhelming even for those of us who live far away. It can and should bring us to our knees to repent of our lack of care for the creation God has entrusted to our stewardship.
But the God who gives the water that gives everlasting life, is also the God of our lakes, rivers, and oceans. We can and should pray, asking for God's wisdom, mercy, and guidance. Our prayers are powerful because the God who hears and answers us is powerful. Also, our prayers connect us to our sisters and brothers who are suffering in the midst of the disaster. Prayers are never in vain; as we pray, so we live out our faith. Pray to the God of Living Water. Read John 4:7-15
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