The Refreshment Jesus offers ~ A Guest Post by Jennie Atkins

It’s hot. You’re sweating—okay, women don’t sweat, we perspire.  It still doesn’t change the fact that the thermometer has crept far too close to the unpleasant three-digit mark and the humidity of summer has left your hair limp, your attitude as unsettled as the air before a thunderstorm, and you’re uncomfortable.

Imagine that someone hands you a tall glass of iced tea or ice-cold water with lemon. Or pushes you into the deep end of a cool pool. Or both, like the remake of the 1980’s Nestea commercial.  Ahhh! Refreshing!  It hits the spot and gives you an instant attitude adjustment.

Now consider your life. Are you so overwhelmed with earthly responsibilities, stressed to the max, or just tired to the bone?  Are the demands on your time endless? Don’t get me wrong, all of these things—you spouse, family, and job—are valid demands, but you feel as if there is no end in sight.

 

Well I am handing you a tall glass of refreshment.

In John 4:13 Jesus tells the Samaritan woman “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Jesus is our living water. Our eternal refreshment that goes far beyond drenching our parched throats. It quenches the cravings of our soul.

The refreshment Jesus offers is never-ending.

Ezekiel 47 tells us about Ezekiel’s prophetic vision of the river flowing from the new temple. The water flowed from under the threshold flowing eastward.  The further away from the temple it went the deeper and wider it became.

Verse 5 says it “was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross.” This river, is a picture of God’s refreshment. It is an endless flow coming straight from the throne of God. He longs to give us all we need. Whether it be peace and refreshment or strength to tackle the day ahead. Either way, we can drink from His endless supply of living water.

The refreshment Jesus offers sustains life.

Verse 9 tells us “Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows.” And “where the river flows everything will live.”  In God there is abundant life, life in Him. 

There is a river near me that is a sea of color from the sheer number fish trying to make their way upriver to spawn. This is exactly the picture that forms in my mind when I read this verse. It also tells of the fishermen standing in the water, their nets spread wide to take in God’s abundance. God gives us everything we need to live abundantly, in Him. We shall be like the fishermen, our nets open and full of his blessings.

The refreshment Jesus offers has the power to heal.

Verse 12 shows us “Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail…Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” With God’s living water, there is sustenance and there is healing—for our bodies and our spirit.

Sometimes our lives leave us hot, thirsty, and dry. Stop what you’re doing and take a long sip from the well of living water. Drink of the refreshment Jesus has to offer. You’ll never thirst—or want—again. 

A native Ohioan, Jennie and her husband of almost 40 years have sold their home and are ready to begin the “next chapter” of their life together—a step in faith—destination unknown. While packing their home and waiting for all the paperwork to be done, Jennie loves to garden, sew, or go four-wheeling. Jennie has four children and four grandchildren.

Connect with Jennie at JennieAtkins.com