This weekend, I have a few days off after a long time. I even left home for a while and the peace of not having to do anything at all overwhelms me. Taking time for myself is a luxury I haven’t had for a long time. But I also realize that it is a luxury that many people never have. That may be one of the reasons I put it off for so long. The need is so great here and there is so much to do. So much could be different, so much better than what it is now. This inaction forces me to reconsider that our mission is not my project, but that of our Assigner. Good thing, too! I don’t have to solve everything. Yet the problems in this thirsty country do not let me go.
This morning, I read a passage about thirst in Amos 8:11-13;
‘“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it. “In that day the lovely virgins and the young men shall faint for thirst.”’
This text touched me while reading. While I understand that this passage was written in a different context, I feel the need for it every day. This is exactly what is going on. In Aruba… and in large parts of the world. And most people don’t recognize their thirst or think they can solve it with junk food.
Aruba is a thirsty country. The dry soil reflects the hearts of the people who belong here. So many people here feel like the Samaritans; not recognized, not seen and not heard in their need. But even though Aruba has a good water purification plant, water is not a given for everyone here, and Living Water certainly isn’t.
I recently heard the statement, “Either you will shrink your faith to the level of your experience, or you will allow God to increase your faith to the level of His promises.” Would you like to pray and believe that our Father will fully pour out His Living Water over Aruba?
Mescos cu e bina[1]
Mescos cu e bina ta sklama pa awa
Mi alma ta sklama na Bo
Abo so ta e deseo di mi alma
Y mi kier adora Bo so
Abo so ta mi escudo fiel
Y na Bo mi kier somete
Abo so ta e deseo di mi alma
Y mi kier adora Bo so
[1] Like a deer in Papiamento.