“Mom, look!” she said in a panic.
“What?” I asked, to see what was the matter.
“My flower is DEAD!” she cried.
(It was.)
“Well…did you water it?” I asked.
“YES!” she cried. “I watered it at church!”
That part was true. She watered this flower. One time. At church. (Two months ago.)
She had planted this flower in a little pot at Sunday School, where they watered it. And then she brought it home.
The problem was: she hadn’t watered it since.
This flower had lived (or died) next to my kitchen sink for the past few months, and never got any water–except from a few almost-empty water bottles that I happened to dump on it, before throwing them into the recycling bin.
“Honey,” I told her, “Flowers can only survive if you water them a lot. Like…every day.”
She had a shocked look on her face. “But I watered it at church!”
“I know,” I said, “But you need to keep watering it, every day, if you want it to live.”
As we poured some water into the parched soil of this half-dead flower, I suddenly realized:
I am no different than my daughter.
I do this all the time.
My relationship with Christ is a lot like my daughter Selah’s flower.
It’s a daily thing that needs water.
It doesn’t matter that I watered it at church.
It needs water today. Tomorrow. And every day after that.
Or, it starts to die.
This summer I had a group of friends over for 4 weeks. We got together for one purpose–it was to learn the simple art of meeting with Jesus.
For some of us, this was a brand new concept. For others, it was a lost art we had to rediscover.
After some honest discussion, and tears, we all realized that when we don’t spend time with Jesus, we feel just like that flower by my kitchen sink.
Parched.
Dry.
Thirsty.
(And ready to die.)
So for four weeks and beyond, we practiced. Meeting with Jesus.
And do you know what we learned? It’s so simple. You don’t need to read a book about how to do it.
All you have to do is:
Get alone. (All by yourself.)
Get a Bible.
Get a journal.
And be somewhere quiet (or with soft worship music.)
And here’s what you do…even if it’s only 15 or 30 minutes…
You talk to Jesus. Whether you write, or speak out loud is up to you. But you talk to Him, as honestly as you can. It’s not fancy. He just wants you. Cuss if you have to. And just tell Him what you actually think, and actually feel.
Then you open your Bible and read it. And something incredible happens…He talks back to you. Sometimes it’s so simple. But He is always profound. And you write down what He says. And let it pierce you. And somehow in this process, your spirit encounters His Spirit.
Yes, the Living God, meets with you. (In your car, or in your bathroom, or in your living room..wherever you are.)
And He waters you. He waters your thirsty soul.
And He makes you alive.
Because He is alive.
Jesus Himself, invites you to do this,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28
My friends and I confessed in my living room this summer…that it’s so easy to ignore Him.
It’s so easy to just scroll Facebook, or look through Pinterest…or numb ourselves with a hundred different ways.
When really all we need is just to meet with Jesus.
And be watered. By Him.
Your church can’t do this for you.
Your husband can’t do this for you.
Your friends can’t do this for you.
And Facebook…(sigh) can’t do this for you.
It’s something only you can do.
Only you can drink Him in for yourself.
No one will force you to do it. You can let it go dry. And just dump the end of a water bottle into it, every now and then. Or hope church is really good when you go.
You might still survive.
But you will feel parched, and thirsty, and dry.
All the time.
It’s such a basic principle, and I often fail to remember it. But…
If you want something to grow—water it.
Meet with Jesus. By yourself.
Drink Him in.
Jesus–the One, the only One who waters you.
And brings you back to life.
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