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FRESH WATER (EZEKIEL 47:1-12)

REFLECTION

Fresh water is the theme for today’s reflection. Fresh water is a naturally occurring water that is not salty and is suitable for consumption and crop production. Fresh water is also the habitat for some aquatic life. Ezekiel sees another vision of hope for the exiles. He saw an increasingly flowing river of fresh water with its source from the Temple or sanctuary into the sea. The water represents life and fruitfulness which flows from the glory of God that has tabernacled in the temple or sanctuary. We Ezekiel is told in the vision that “Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds —like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” (Ezekiel 47:9-12). In other words, like the river of fresh water flowing through the land, God’s presence among the Israelites will bring life, prosperity and healing. Let us take delight in experiencing the glory of God through our fellowship and worship services. We are told that the fresh water flowed from the Temple throughout the land. It means our worship centres represent a special place where we experience the glory of God through the power of the Word and other collective active actives such as prayer and singing. Anytime we experience the glory of God with faith, a contrite heart and the readiness to offer our lives to Him as a living sacrifice, we experience spiritual and physical transformation in our lives. For this reason, the writer of Hebrews admonished “not to give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another —and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:25) May every single day of our fellowship and worship services cause us to experience the glory of the Lord in the form of an endless flow of fresh water with its accompanied blessings.

Dear friend, although the water Ezekiel saw was in a vision, it reflects the importance of fresh water to the survival of a nation. God has blessed some countries with an abundance of fresh water but the sad reality, especially in some parts of Africa and for that matter, Ghana is that people are engaging in illegal mining which has led to the pollution of many fresh water bodies. Do we turn around to blame God for the lack of fish and clean drinking water derived from these precious natural resources (fresh water bodies)? We must be good stewards of our environment and continue to take care of the water and other natural resources God has blessed us with so that we do not suffer from the phenomenon called the “resources curse”. Christian faith and spiritual growth must be linked to the maintenance and improvement of our water bodies and entire environment as a divine duty. We cannot continue to pray or purport to worship God in a polluted environment and expect to experience His full glory. There must be a connection between our spirituality and our stewardship of the environment.

In summary, we have discovered that our worship centre or fellowship provides us with an opportunity to experience the Glory of God like a river of fresh living water that must positively impact our society. Again, we are called upon to be good stewards of our water bodies and environment. Shalom.

PRAYER

Almighty God, may we continue to experience Your glory in the form of an unending flow of fresh water with its accompanied blessings. May our faith and Spiritual growth make us good stewards of the water bodies and other natural resources You have blessed us with. Amen.