DAILY READING
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REFLECTION
Drinking from the Wells of Salvation
by Pastor Jeff Morlock
For 25 years “Obey Your Thirst” was the slogan for a popular series of soft drink commercials. The message was clear: whatever you desire, go for it. Lust, indulgence and instant gratification are all on the table. If it feels good do it. Have it your way. The problem of course is that we thirst for that which does not satisfy. We too often drink from wells that are stagnant or poisoned, wells that make us even thirstier, wells that will eventually run dry. After years of obeying their thirst instead of the Lord’s commands, Judah was bound for exile. And though a remnant would eventually return to their homeland, in the meantime Isaiah invites those whose souls are parched, and those who feel like they are drowning in despair to drink from the wells of salvation.
Through water God meets our deepest needs, as he did when he parted the Red Sea, freeing Israel from their Egyptian oppressors. Verse two of today's reading echoes the first recorded praise song in the Bible (Exodus 15:4) sung by people with damp faces looking up in gratitude and forward in hope to a land that God had promised. Isaiah demonstrates God’s faithfulness in fulfilling his promise to deliver his people again and again from all that would enslave them. Not just from enemies around them, but also from the enemy within.
Jesus, whose name means, “the Lord saves” fulfills this promise once and for all at the cross. Salvation flows from Calvary, where the solution to every problem, provision for every need, and grace to lay down every burden are found. The wells of salvation are bottomless and cannot be exhausted. Their water of God’s presence gives new life to a world dying of thirst, delivering all who are overwhelmed by the floods of destruction brought on by sin.
So by all means, obey your real thirst! While the world may view prayer and communion with the Lord as boring disciplines performed out of habit or obligation, Isaiah and Jesus invite us to experience the satisfaction of quenching our soul’s craving as we gather for worship each Sunday, and draw daily refreshment from the deep well of God’s Word. Prayer: Lord Jesus, let us fully enter into the joy that you have for us today as we partake of your presence and delight in your promise. Amen.
PRAYER PRACTICE
Read today’s passage through once. Then spend some time praying and asking God to show you what you need to pay attention to in the text. Read it again. Now ask God to help you see what this text, and the part that has stood out, may mean for you. Don’t expect to get a clear word every time but always be ready to really hear from God through His Word.
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