Yesterday I had dinner at Chili’s. If you’ve been to a sit-down restaurant, you know the routine, you get there, you put your name on the list and wait to be called. Once there is a free table for your party, you are then taken to that table and handed a menu. This menu contains hundreds (maybe a little too extreme a number but you get the idea) of different food options. You have appetizers, entrees, desserts, and drinks. They also have side dishes which can be replaced for something on your choice of entree. So… you are sitting there, looking over the menu. Then the waitress or waiter come and ask if they can get you started on a drink. This is where some people get stuck and either A) take forever to order a simple beverage option and go back and forth between Coke or Diet Coke or B) the person knows exactly what he/she wants and orders it.
Well, I decide to go with water. It has become more of an instinct. I don’t even look at the choices anymore. The initial reason for my choosing water was that it is free so our bill at the end wouldn’t be as scary but now I choose water for health reasons. I realize that if I were to go with my choice of drink, for example, raspberry iced tea or Sprite, I would enjoy the first couple of sips but that’s it. I’ve been pretty thirsty before and take a drink of either of the above and realize that after the initial taste of satisfaction, I am not left satisfied (If that makes any sense). Sure, my mouth was craving a little unhealthy sweetness so I go for the Sprite but at the end I am left more thirsty than I was when I initially arrive and made my decision. I’ve realize -with time- that water is the only drink out there that can really quench your thirst. NEWS FLASH. Everyone knows that though, right!? Everyone knows that only water can satisfy that thirst… so… if everyone knows, why do we keep making unhealthy choices? Hmm… ponder on that.
This is where I shift gears.
I realized, or re-realized since I’ve realized this idea before, Jesus is our water. Jesus is the only one that can quench the empty parts of our soul. We walk around in our menu called Life and look at the choices. Once we get to a certain age we are able to know which choices are the right ones and which ones are the wrong ones. Somehow we manage to make bad choices easier than we can make the right ones. Just like at a restaurant you are able to juggle the food choices but the first decision you must make is what drink you will be having. I like to think of this as the time that we first encounter Jesus.We are faced with all these choices and decisions and opportunities but the first thing we must decide is whether we are going to follow Jesus or not. Some decide to go with a different unhealthy drink that will lead to destruction (i.e. drugs, alcohol, pornography, etc.) and some decide to take the healthy drink and follow through.
Jesus Christ is the only one that offers and gives freely the water of life. The one that quenches your thirst and will never leave you thirsty again. He satisfies those parts of hearts that long to be known, to be loved, to be accepted, to be forgiven, to be embraced, to be encouraged. He is the only one that does that and it’s almost like water. You can have all the sweet drinks out there and somehow, water is always available and free, like Jesus.
So when I say, “let’s get healthy” I’m not just talking about physically getting healthy and start making the right food choices but I am also talking about the choices we make in Life. Let’s look at our options; let’s take some time to think through and see “Is this a healthy choice for my life or not?” Will this quench the hunger/thirst/emptiness that I have inside or is this going to make me even thirstier or leave me even less satisfied? Here is my encouragement for you: When you walk around your daily menu called Life, the first choice is going to be what beverage you are having so choose water, choose Jesus. If you start with a healthy choice everyday, it makes it easier to follow through with healthy choices for the rest of your day. Let’s choose Jesus everyday and allow Him to quench the emptiness or burdened parts of our souls.
Blessings.
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