Get in the river!

"Then he led me along the bank of the river. As I came back, I saw on the bank of the river a great many trees on the one side and on the other. He said to me, 'This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down to the Arabah; and when it enters the sea, the sea of stagnant waters, the water will become fresh. Wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will I've, and there will be very many fish, once these waters reach there.'"

(Ezekiel 47:6b-9a)

It rained yesterday! I know, that's not earth-shattering or exciting to most... but when you live in the (high) desert, water is a rare, but welcomed sight. When we lived in Hawaii, it rained almost every day. In fact, the mascot of the University of Hawaii is the "Rainbows." So yah, no big deal (though the people of Hawaii have a love-affair with water & the ocean - see "Moana" for more details!). But when it rains HERE in the Antelope Valley, people stop and take notice.

At the end of the book of Ezekiel, the prophet is shown a vision of what God's kingdom will be like - and it involves water. Like the vision in Revelation 22, "Heaven" has lots of water (though these 2 visions were written hundreds of years apart!). Ezekiel saw a river flowing out from the throne of God. He's told that wherever the waters of God flow, LIFE HAPPENS! Even the "stagnant waters" of the Dead Sea will be brought back to life! Fish will reappear! Creatures will live! (The passage goes on to speak of the trees, fruit, and 'healing leaves,' just like Rev.22, but I want to keep focused on the water.)

What an amazing image for God's kingdom. HEALING & LIFE-GIVING WATERS! We all have wounds, scars, injuries, and dead parts in our lives... but when we allow God's waters to wash over us (or when we place ourselves in the river - connecting through worship, song, prayer, praise, Christian community, etc.)... healing and life happen! That's the way God intends for this world to function.

So what are we waiting for? Let's get in the river!