I recently had two frightening experiences, the second of which sent me seeking help at a nearby emergency room. Their diagnosis was dehydration. I was quite surprised by this because I drink water every day. In fact, one of the first things I do upon awakening each morning is drink water. When I expressed my surprise at their diagnosis, I was told that most people aren’t drinking nearly enough water. I was grateful to find out that what I had been experiencing could be solved by simply increasing the water I drink each day (plus the IV bag of fluid they insisted was necessary).
I knew water was important, but I had no idea just how badly mild dehydration could affect a person. Since leaving the hospital, I can assure you that I have significantly increased my water intake. I have no desire to repeat any of the effects of dehydration ever again! Lately, while sipping on water trying to make certain that I am giving my body what it needs, I have been reminded how important it is to also make sure I am drinking daily of the Living Waters as well. My soul needs that life-giving water just as badly as my physical body needs the water I am drinking.
“On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink’” John 7:37. If I do not drink daily from the source of Living Water, I will be spiritually dehydrated. Just as physical dehydration was affecting my heart, my strength, and my ability to think clearly, I believe spiritual dehydration affects us in the very same way, my friend. This is why it is so critical to guard against it by daily drinking deeply from the well of Living Water. How can we do this? We must be intentional to spend time with Him and in His Word.
This is how we can guard against spiritual dehydration. Saturate yourself with His Word. Immerse yourself in His presence. Drink deeply from that spring that satisfies like nothing in this world can, beloved! You see; the thing about “dehydration” is that it can slip up on you without you even realizing it. You can think you are doing okay. You can think that you are getting enough of what you need, not realizing that it is not nearly enough. You may not even notice for some time how it is affecting your heart, how it is sapping your strength, or how it has affected your thinking.
Not getting enough “water” affects you in many ways that you often don’t realize until problems arise that cannot be ignored. One very concerning thing it affects is your heart, which should cause us to carefully consider whether we are adequately taking care of ourselves. Again, this has both physical and spiritual ramifications. However, I will be focusing mostly on the spiritual here today. When we are not drinking deeply and regularly from the fountain of Living Water, it can and will affect our heart. Proverbs 4:23 warns us to guard our hearts above all else, for it is the source of life.
Friends, it is vital that we take good care of our heart because everything we do flows from it. It is the center of our being and it guides us in the choices we make. We must make sure that we are taking good care of it by filling it with His Word. If our heart is not right, we will not do what is right. To be spiritually healthy, you must make certain that you are saturating yourself in His Word. As the nurse pointed out, we may think we are getting what we need, but many of us are not. What does this mean? It means we have to feed ourselves.
This means we cannot rely on other people to do it for us. We must get in His Word and learn for ourselves what it says. If we wish to be a healthy Christian, we cannot exist only on what we get from other people. (Preachers and teachers are great, but we’ve also got to learn to feed ourselves!) We must take care of our heart by filling it with Truth from His Word. This is where we find some of the Living Water that brings the nourishment our hearts long for! Time with Him and time spent in His Word fills our heart and quenches that thirst we all were born with.
When we fail to spend adequate time with Him and in His Word, it also affects our strength. Strong Christians are those who have delved deeply into His Word so that it guides them on a daily basis. Strong believers are those who drink deeply from the well as they seek His face daily for the strength they need. The further we drift from these important habits, the more our strength fades. We may not notice it for a while, but it is happening, nonetheless. Failing to get the nourishment our souls need greatly reduces our strength, and we need strength to stand, beloved!
Another symptom that comes when experiencing dehydration is difficulty concentrating. It affects your ability to think clearly. If there is anything that a believer needs to be able to do in these dark and evil days, it is to be able to concentrate and think clearly! A quick search of Scriptures referencing thoughts, focus, or your mind will show just how important this is in the life of every believer. How can we protect our minds and make certain that we are thinking clearly? I’m sure the answer is obvious to you by now, dear heart. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we have to immerse them in His Word!
Romans 12:2 challenges us to transform our minds by renewing them with His Word. Philippians 4:8 tells us the kind of thoughts that are appropriate for believers. (Here’s a hint: they are thoughts that honor God and agree with what we find in His Word.) For a believer to be thinking clearly, they have to be thinking Biblically. James, the half-brother of Jesus, warns us in the book that bears his name that becoming friends with the world makes us enemies of God (James 4:4). Dear heart, we are not supposed to think like the people of this world think.
I say again, for a believer to be thinking clearly, they have to be thinking Biblically! The only way that can happen is if we are truly making time with Him and time in His Word a daily priority. Dear heart, when I tried to tell the nurse I had been drinking water, she informed me that “everybody says that, but most people aren’t drinking nearly enough water.” I now ask you to do what I have done these past weeks. Ask yourself if you are truly drinking enough water. (By the way, I mean both physically and spiritually since both are very important!)
Friends, I challenge you to carefully examine your daily habits and do your best to answer this question honestly. Then, if need be, make some changes to make certain you are getting what you need. If you are a regular reader of my writing (I greatly appreciate you!!), you already know that I believe that we are in the very last minutes of the last days. I believe that now more than ever we need to make sure that we are staying alert and standing firm. The only way to do this is by being as concerned with our spiritual nourishment as we are our physical nourishment!
Beloved, we need you in the fight! Make certain that you are taking good care of yourself!
Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the devil. For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. This is why you must take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand. Ephesians 6:10-13
remember your word to your servant; You have given me hope through it. This is my comfort in my affliction: your promise has given me life. Psalm 119:49-50
Hold on to instruction; don’t let go. Guard it, for it is your life. Proverbs 4:13
Katrina Douglas
11/20/23
