Beside Still Waters

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters. (Psalm 23:2)

Is there anything as refreshing as a cool drink of water? Throughout the day, we consume a lot of different fluids. For some people, it's coffee or tea, juices or lemonade, adult beverages or soda. Yet, with all the choices the world offers, ultimately our bodies need -- our bodies crave -- simple, God-given water.

When you're going for a walk, or mowing the lawn, exercising in some way or simply exerting yourself more than usual, often the very first thing you want (after a breather) is pure, refreshing water.

Indeed, we love water so much, we find its very presence peaceful and calming. It's as though our spiritual selves long to be near it just as much as our physical bodies require it for survival. We build our homes next to it. We plan activities around it. We'll sit and stare at it for hours.

Maybe this need -- this physical, emotional, spiritual need -- is why Jesus talked about the Water of Life.

“Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:13-14)

As the Good Shepherd, Jesus knows our desires... but more than that, He knows our needs. It's our nature to drink. It's God's nature to lead us to the still, peaceful water of Life.