I am currently on a summer internship in the counseling department of the international non-profit ministry Focus on the Family. It's located in - you guessed it - Colorado Springs, Colorado. Many people describe Colorado as mountainous, beautiful, and unpredictable when it comes to weather.
As a whole, that description is 100% accurate.
However, many people forget to point out the fact that Colorado has an immeasurable amount of lakes, rivers, and springs. Water is spread widely across this great state, and I have been able to visit a couple of these incredible bodies of water for myself. From the Arkansas River (which is lots of fun to go white water rafting on) to Lilly Lake in Estes Park, the watery scenery pervades the expectant eye of the Colorado adventurer. And in many ways, it pervaded my eyes. It also showed me a lot more than just a pleasant, glassy overlook.
It showed me God.
Let's think about this for a second. Water can come in many different forms. It can come dripping from a faucet, exerting a gentle, sweet tone. It can also come in the form of a babbling brook, with a stronger but soothing melody. Water can come crashing down from rocks with beautiful yet loud force. And in some cases, water can be a large wall of unstoppable force, raging like a freight train with nothing able to stand in it's way without the unsettling thought of perishing into a million insignificant pieces. Yet still, it remains water.
Just the very thought of standing before a holy, perfect God, absolutely vulnerable and uncovered, strikes unfathomable fear in me. This God we are standing in front of is able to destroy entire WORLDS. Isaiah 24:1 states, "Behold, the LORD will empty the earth and make it desolate, and He will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants." Now read that again and try not to have shivers run down your spine. Isaiah is trying to warn these people that if they do not begin listening to God, He will destroy and rip apart the world. I don't know about you, but I would be making sure that I am standing in front of this God in the up-most respect. After all, this God we are talking about is HUGE. He is WILD. He is UNSAFE. He could strike us down in the blink of an eye. As Lucy said of Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia, "He is not a tame lion."
Yet...He is gentle, soothing and gracious.
We see His beautiful and sweet nature in everything around us. His grace permeates the very fiber of our being because we are simply able to take one more breath. Just as water flows sweetly down a babbling brook, so our fierce God stands next to us, puts His arms around us, and says, "You are mine. And I love you." The psalmist cries in Psalms 86, "But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness." He is not only full of steadfast love, but He is abounding. And that abounding love is as ferocious as it is gentle and soothing. Not only His presence, but the very fact that He is should bring joy and comfort to our sinful, brittle hearts.
But this world will not listen.
Water is also affected by temperature. Now, no matter the temperature, the fact still remains that it is indeed H2O. However, giving someone a hot cup of water on a 100 degree day is probably not going to win anyone over. And just the same, giving someone an ice bath after they had just been in sub-zero temperatures will quite possibly lose you some friends. But...give someone a nice, cool glass of ice water during a warm, humid day and it will touch their soul.
This is the same in how we approach those who have rejected (Yes, I said rejected) the sweet yet ferocious love of God. See, the bond between God and man was cut off during the Fall in Genesis. Therefore, communion with God is something that, without the way that Christ made for us, is simply not possible. That is why God came down as Christ to bridge the gap between Him and us. But even though that has been done, we still seem to turn our back to Him and say, "Nah, I've got it all covered." Therefore, if someone rejects God's love, how should we present it to them in a way that intrigues them?
Sometimes, that means giving them time.
After all, you don't want to give someone a freezing cold ice bath in sub-zero temperatures. They are not ready for that. Wait until they are warmed up a little, but until that time comes...show them the area where the fire is going. Be their friend. Lay your life down for them.
Allow them to be ready for that cup of water when the time comes.
Water is a gift that God gives us not only to quench our thirst, or to splash on our bodies to get us clean. Water is a way that God shows His love for us in everything He does so perfectly. And He doesn't do this by accident or by chance. Everything He shows is for a purpose.
I pray His unchanging waters would wash over you today.