A Worried Young Woman and a Word from Scripture
This morning I went to breakfast with a beautiful family. We were talking about life and love and weddings, and I talked a little bit about my family and my parents. I probably said too many things, because then a young lady who was my student said to me, “Wow, there are so many things to worry about.” She told me she might be getting engaged pretty soon, and I think I made her worry.
I believe today’s readings can help us put our hearts to rest.
The reading says, “All you who are thirsty, come to the water.” Well, yeah. Obviously. “Why spend your money for what is not bread, your wages for what fails to satisfy?” That part, that part is significant.
That word satisfy is important. It shows up again in the gospel, where after Jesus multiplied the bread and gave it out to everyone, the people ate and were satisfied. To be satisfied in your life. The hand of the Lord feeds us and answers all our needs.
Then Paul asks, “What will separate me from the love of Christ?” Most of us do not have to worry about persecution or famine or the sword. But we have other things. Loneliness. Illness. Rejection. Trials. Difficulties. Those are the fears we carry in our hearts.
So when the Lord says, “All you who are thirsty, come to the water,” he is really saying: all of you who are looking for more in your life, come to me. The Lord is the water. And all of you spending your energy on what fails to satisfy, come to me.
The Lamborghini and the Little Boy
A couple of days ago I celebrated my birthday. I made it. I am 61 years old.
A wonderful family asked me what we could do to celebrate, and I said why don’t we invite my mom, my sister, my brother-in-law, a couple of friends, some families I know well, and go out to dinner. The meal did not settle well. I felt bloated and a little sick to my stomach afterward. It is a great place, do not get me wrong, but that night it just was not good.
So I said to everyone, let’s go for a walk. It was around 9:30 or 10 o’clock at night. We were walking along, and all of a sudden we see this car. A Lamborghini. That sound, that unmistakable engine sound. (watch the video for Father doing sound effects, timestamp 4:31) There was a seventh-grade boy with us, part of one of the families, and his mouth just dropped open. It was a beautiful car.
The Lamborghini slowed down, then stopped, then backed up. The passenger-side window came down, and the driver leaned over and said to the boy, “You want to come in?”
The kid was starstruck.
We all looked at each other. Who is this guy? Then he opened the driver’s door, and it opened up with a ssssss. The boy got into the driver’s seat and was just thrilled out of his mind. We were all happy for him, taking pictures. I ended up in the back of the car where the engine sits, and the driver stepped on the gas from outside. I felt like my pants were on fire. The heat, the energy. It was just amazing.
We thanked the driver, he took off, and a little further down the road we saw he had parked the Lamborghini outside a restaurant. Probably the owner, who knows.
On the drive home I kept thinking about it. The scripture came back to me. “Why spend your money for what is not bread, your wages for what fails to satisfy?”
That driver had more pleasure seeing the look on that little boy’s face than from the Lamborghini itself. The fact that he could make that boy’s night, that he chose to stop, to back up, to ask the kid if he wanted to see inside, that was the thing that brought him joy.
When you buy something, it might give you pleasure for six months. Maybe. Then it is over. But what brings you greater joy is what you least expect, and that is when you are able to give something. To show love. To bring excitement to someone else. To do something special for someone else.
This is the beauty of what God does for us. He does not just give us things. He gives us the satisfaction, the love that goes with it.
The Fountain That Beat Six Flags
I remember many years ago taking a family to Six Flags. Four kids, their mom, and me. Do you know what you spend 80 percent of your time doing at Six Flags? Waiting in line. You spend a fortune to wait in line. We had a good time, but we spent a fortune.
Afterward we went to get ice cream in Richardson, and nearby there was a little courtyard with a fountain that shoots water up into the air. The kids played in that fountain, and they had more fun there than in the hundreds of dollars we had spent at Six Flags all day.
Why? Because they were together. They were having fun. It was simple and it was good. It is hard to fully describe, but they were family, and that was enough.
My Greatest Life Lesson
At dinner on my birthday, someone asked me what I had learned in 61 years of life. I gave some answer on the spot that I do not even remember now. But driving home that night, after everything that had happened, I finally knew what I wanted to say.
In 61 years, the most important thing I have learned is this: I am not God. I need God. And thank God I have God, who brings meaning and purpose to our lives.
He is the water we are looking for.
Think about it this way. Imagine if you had a stomach and there was no food in the world. Imagine if you were created with a throat and there was nothing to drink. Imagine if you were given a tongue but could not speak. What an awful thing, to be created with a need and have nothing to fill it.
Now imagine a world where you are looking for love and there is no love to be found. Or you feel lonely and there is no companionship anywhere.
This is what makes life so remarkable. If you are looking for love, there is love. If you are looking for meaning, there is meaning. If you are looking for food, go to the grocery store. If you are looking for something to drink, go to the fountain. Everything you are looking for exists. You just have to go to the right place.
Come to me. All you who are thirsty, come to the water.
There Is No Reason to Turn Anyone Away
One more thing from the gospel. The crowd had been with Jesus for hours. They were tired, hungry, and it was getting late. The disciples wanted to send everyone home. And Jesus said, “There is no reason to turn them away.”
Thank God he said that. Because it means you can come to him for everything. Whatever you are looking for, this is the place.
That is the difference between a seventh grader and a 61-year-old. At that age, you feel strong, you feel like you can do it all yourself, and you want the fancy things. Then as you get older, you begin to realize there is only one thing you need. You just need to know that you are loved. That is it. That is enough.
I am not God. I need God. And thank God I have God.
