Dying of Thirst
Most people think that most of Texas is dry and deserty. And that would be true of some of the western half of the state. The eastern half is filled with green, rolling hills and pine forests. The southern portion is subtropical, lined with citrus and palm trees.Central Texas is the meeting place for east and west, with rugged rocky hills, fields of bluebonnets, and dozens of lakes and rivers all the way to the Gulf Coast. Mesquite and cedar cover the hills, and oak and pecan trees provide the shade.But not now.A four-year drought has climaxed in the hottest driest year in 100 years of record-keeping.Lakes are dropping a foot each week. Boat docks are far from water. Rationing is increasing. Normally green pastures are brown and bare.Brittle mesquite and cedar are kindling for raging fires. Even oak and pecan trees are dying. Deer are starving. Varmints and vermin are scarce.Life requires water.Without water, the land has no life to give.Jesus said the same thing:Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water… whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” ( John 4:10,14)Is your life in drought? Are you dying of thirst?Jesus extends this thirst-quenching invitation:“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (John 7:38)C 2011 Judy Douglass