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Weekend > 7/19
Streams
of living
water
f
“The one who believes in
Me, as the Scripture has
said, will have streams
of living water flow from
deep within him.”
—John 7:38
Read John 7:37-39.
In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy
searches the land of Oz tirelessly
for the wizard, whom she hopes will
help her get home. When the wizard
proves to be a phony, Dorothy sobs
desperately, fearing she will never get
home. Only then does she discover
that she has had the power to get
home all along.
However, it isn’t Dorothy who
has the power; it’s her red shoes.
Discovering this truth, she smiles
serenely and clicks her heels together,
uttering those famous words, “There’s
no place like home.”
Sometimes, we act just like Dorothy.
We search tirelessly for something to
take away the dry and empty feeling
inside, but we can’t find anything to
satisfy us. Good grades, a new car, or
going on our dream date don’t change
the way we feel. We may even begin
to feel desperate, thinking our soul’s
thirstiness will never be quenched.
If we’re Christians, we don’t
need to look any further than inside
ourselves for streams of living water
to quench our spiritual thirst. No, we
don’t possess these streams ourselves
any more than Dorothy possessed
the power to get herself home. The
Holy Spirit, who lives inside us, causes
streams of living water to flow from
deep within us. The living water we so
desperately crave has already been
given to us.
Jesus has sent the Helper, the
Counselor, the Holy Spirit Himself to
live within us and give us everything we
need. When we drink of His living water,
we never have to be thirsty again.
1
O
Monday > 7/20
Sometimes, you don’t
have to say anything.
have you ever had a conversation that left you speechless? Perhaps
someone said something so incredibly rude that you couldn’t believe
what you just heard. Maybe you received the terrible news that someone you
loved had just died. Whatever it was, you had no comeback. You might not have
even been able to think straight, let alone push intelligible words out of your
mouth.
Sometimes, you might feel like that when you pray. During those times, the
Holy Spirit is faithfully bringing your deepest pains before the Father. And He
isn’t using words, either.
In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our
weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as
we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with
unspoken groanings. —Romans 8:26
Read Romans 8:12-27 and spend extra time considering verse 26.
What does the author, Paul, think about our present sufferings?
Do you agree with him? Why or why not?
What do you think is the weakness Paul refers to in verse 26?
Do you ever lack the words to pray? When?
How does it make you feel to know that even when you don’t know how to
approach God, you are still being prayed for by God Himself?
You don’t have to get it all together to come to God. You don’t have to sound
spiritual or use big words. You don’t even have to use words at all. It is perfectly
fine to just sit before God and sob or simply utter that amazingly powerful
word—help. In those moments, the Holy Spirit brings our painful, hopeless
situation before the Father, praying in ways deeper than we can imagine, always
perfectly aligned with God’s will. Our God is completely faithful, not only to hear
our prayers, but to actually voice them for us in our times of need.
When you
can’t say
the words, the
Holy Spirit
can. Let Him.
Personal Space
“I believe in the surprises of the Holy Spirit.”
—L.J. Suenens
Be
surprised.
32 | jul 2009 ec magazine ec magazine jul 2009 | 33