STREAMS OF LIVING WATER

There's a place in the woods near my house that I like to retreat to pretty regularly, especially when the weather allows. The entrance to this secluded path is small and almost hidden. And once inside, there is only one path and it leads you alongside a stream. If you follow the path, you'll notice a slight change in elevation until you reach the high point which then opens up to a nice view of the stream. For as beautiful as I think this place is, I often wonder why I rarely run into other people enjoying the quietness of this hidden gem.

This is my favorite place to be when I want, or need, to spend time with God. And this past October, I found myself there. It had been a long few days and I just felt off and needed alone time with my Heavenly Father. And truthfully, a big contributor to my issue was that I hadn't spent anytime in prayer for several days. As I walked the path, I mentioned to God that I would really love to hear from him but that I would be 'ok' if our time together in the woods was spent in silence. Immediately Psalm 42 came to mind, specifically the first two verses: "As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God."

I continued along the path until I reached the first bench about a third of the way through the path. I don't often stop at this bench because it doesn't offer a good view of the water. But on this day, I think I was just tired and didn't want to finish the walk. I sat there in silence for several minutes, taking in the beauty surrounding me. The sun was shining through the trees highlighting the leaves that had already begun changing colors. The sight was absolutely beautiful. As I sat there, my mind started racing with the thoughts of all the stress in my life - work, family, bills, etc. etc. etc. I began wondering why I continually find myself out of rhythm with God. Why do I continually allow myself to drown in worries of this life?

I stood up and crept closer to the tree line to get a better view of the stream. The sound of the water was so calm and peaceful and then God's presence began to calm my agitated spirit. The answer I came looking for was simple, and I knew it. It's almost like I forget that to get myself centered all I need to do is get away for a little bit and spend quiet time with God. Thinking I had gotten all that I needed from this time alone with God, I turned around to leave. As I did that, a large deer was standing on the path staring at me. It couldn't have been more than 20 feet away and it was by far the closest I had ever been to a deer. We both stood there staring at each other for several minutes. The deer didn't seem afraid of me and just continued chewing whatever it was eating. It then slowly walked off the path toward the stream which allowed me to continue walking. When I reached the spot the deer had stood, I looked in the woods and there it was, next to another deer. They were both standing near the edge of the stream looking at me.

God then reminded me of the scripture I had quoted when I had first entered the woods, "As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God." I stood there staring at the two deer drinking water from the stream, and a wonderful calming presence fell upon me. In that moment I knew what God was saying. John 7:37-38 says, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within them.”

The deer are smart enough to know where to go when they are thirsty. They don't wait a few days until they are out of rhythm, they immediately go to water when they are in need. I wonder why I don't do the same.

† let the light in †