EG Ministries INC.

Living Water

John 4 records the meeting of Jesus and the woman from Samaria (the woman at the well).
In verse 10, Jesus offers the woman “Living Water”.
I don’t know about you, but this concept of “Living Water” never sat concretely in my mind.
I often came away from this story wondering what was the difference between the water she was drawing in the well, and “living water”.
(NOTE:  I know Jesus is the Living Water, but why would He give Himself this name?  What’s the big deal?)

Last week, a heard a speaker call the well a cistern!  All of the sudden, the picture of Jesus as LIVING WATER became crystal clear!
A cistern is a plastered hole in the ground that collects water.  There is no natural source to fill this well; it is solely dependent on the weather (rain).  A cistern has to be cared for constantly!  If the plaster walls crack, the water the cistern collects drains out making the well useless!  (Other than a prison…remember Joseph?  I digress, back to the cistern…)
The “well” from which the woman was drawing water, was an old well that had been cared for for generations!  It was a deep well, so it could hold a lot of water, but there was no underground source from which the water came, there was no living source.

Jesus comes and tells her HE IS THE LIVING WATER!
Living water comes from a natural spring that never runs dry.
1 John 5:11  And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
It needs no upkeep, no work on our part (unlike the old cisterns).
Ephesians 2:8, 9  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
It continuously gives fresh, clean, new water (unlike the old cisterns).
2 Corinthians 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
It is free (unlike the cisterns that were controlled by tribes).
Romans 6:23  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
It takes little to no effort to collect (unlike the cistern where one had to haul heavy buckets up and down the deep pits).
Romans 10:13  For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Jesus, our LIVING WATER!!
Isaiah 55:1a  “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters…”

The Power of the Family of God

Acts 9 records the miraculous conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus. After meeting Jesus, Saul is blinded for a time. He is led into the city, where a believer named Ananias is given a message from God to go to Saul and help him.
Ananias, like any believer, was concerned because this guy Saul was killing, arresting, and persecuting Christians (believers).

God tells Ananias to Go!

In God’s strength, Ananias goes to Saul.

(What happens next, and the first words of Ananias to Saul are PRICELESS!!)
Acts 9:17 records this encounter:
So Ananias departed and entered the house.
And laying his hands on him he said,
“Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

The first thing Ananias did was touch Saul.
This is HUGE! He placed his hand on the man who had the potential to kill him, yet, in God’s strength and trust, he not only came close to him, he reached out and touched him!

The first word Ananias said to Saul:  BROTHER!
This is HUGE! Ananias could have said ANYTHING to Saul, but his very first word spoke love, inclusion, trust. It was relational, familial, and spiritual. By calling Saul a Brother, it said:  You are one of us. I know you know Jesus. We are family!

OH! The power of family!! When we lead girls to the Lord at camp, one of the first things we say to them is YOU ARE NOW MY SISTER!! That word “SISTER” communicates to our girls that we love them, that they are one of us, that together we will go forward, that we’ve got their back, and even if their family life at home isn’t the best, they have a forever family with us in Jesus!

The Power of Family!

Romans 12:5  So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
Romans 15:5-7  Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:  That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

But first, Thanks!

We all are familiar with the story of Jesus feeding the 5000.
(It’s the only miracle recorded in each gospel, pretty cool.)
If you were to retell the story to someone, I’m guessing it would go something like this:  Jesus was teaching a huge crowd, out in the middle of nowhere. It got to be late in the day, and everyone was getting hungry. Jesus’ disciples tell Jesus to send the crowds away, but Jesus asked His disciples to feed them. There ensues a quick discussion of HOW?? Then two fishes and five loaves are brought to Jesus. Jesus multiplies them and feeds the whole crowd, which we come to understand are 5000 men PLUS the women and children. In the end, 12 baskets of food are left over.

Amazing story! But did you pick up on the one fact that was left out?
It’s the one fact that actually makes the miracle happen.
Between Jesus receiving the loaves and fish, and the multiplying of said lunch, there is a moment that is often forgotten or rushed through…
Matthew 14:19b…looking up to heaven, He gave thanks…
Mark 6:41b…looking up to heaven, He gave thanks…
Luke 9:16b…looking up to heaven, He gave thanks…
John 6:11…gave thanks…

My point isn’t so much that Jesus gave thanks.
We can all be grateful.
My point is WHEN did Jesus give thanks?
Was it after the food was multiplied?
Was it as the people’s bellies were filled?
Was it after the 12 baskets were leftover?
NOPE!
Jesus gave thanks BEFORE the miracle happened!
Jesus gave thanks BEFORE the people were satisfied!
Jesus gave thanks BEFORE there were leftovers for which to praise God!
Jesus gave thanks FIRST!

Move this action to your life today.
Can you give thanks BEFORE your prayers for healing happen?
Can you give thanks BEFORE God supplies a financial need?
Can you give thanks BEFORE a wayward child comes back to the LORD?
GIVE GOD THANKS, NOW!
BECAUSE HE PROMISED HE WOULD DO IT, IN GRATITUDE, CLAIM IT!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks:  for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Laminins

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LAMININS:  A family of proteins that are an integral part of the structural membranes in almost every animal/human tissue. Laminins are what hold us together….LITERALLY. They are cell adhesion molecules. They are what holds one cell of our bodies to the next cell. Without them, we would literally fall apart.Thanks for the science lesson? HOLD ON…KEEP READING!!!

Did you notice the picture that is linked to this post? The one that looks like…wait for it, wait for it…YES! A CROSS!!! AND THIS IS NOT a ‘Christian portrayal’ of it….if you look up laminin in any scientific/medical journal.Amazing! The ‘glue’ that holds us together….ALL of us….is in the shape of the cross.
Immediately Colossians 1:15-17 came to mind: ‘For by Him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things HOLD TOGETHER.’ 

Thousands of years before the world knew anything about laminin, the apostle Paul penned those words. And now we see that from a very LITERAL standpoint, we are held together, one cell to another, by the cross.

You would never in a quadrillion years convince me that this is anything other than the mark of a Creator who knew EXACTLY what laminin ‘glue’ would look like long before Adam even breathed his first breath!!

VERY COOL!!

We praise YOU, LORD!