Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent

Our parish is participating in Operation Rice Bowl for Lent this year. This is a program where each of us is encouraged to walk in solidarity with people across the world who are in need.  A calendar that is included with the Rice Bowl provides daily suggestions on how we can be mindful of people from Africa, Nicaragua and other developing nations. We are called to pray, fast and give alms as part of our Lenten observance.  This last week we were encouraged to fast from all beverages except for water.  After just the first day or so, I realized that this was going to be a challenge for me, since I was longing for my beverages that I had become so accustomed to enjoying.  When I read today’s readings, I was struck by the line “Athirst is my soul for the living God.”  I live in a country where most of us never really know what it means to be truly thirsty, since we have multiple water supplies around us.  This week’s fasting from beverages other than water gave me many opportunities to reflect on water, on thirsting, and what it might mean to really “thirst for God.”

Water is a gift from God- part of His amazing creation, and yet 750 million people to do not have access to safe water. Over 842,000 people die every year because of inadequate drinking water, sanitation and poor hygiene.  I have seen firsthand villages in Honduras without water supplies for cooking, cleaning and drinking.  This challenges me to see water with a different perspective. This week reminded me again that I am called to use water responsibly recognizing that my daily use in some way affects water availability for others.  When you have seen people walk miles to get gallons of water for their daily use, it makes me try to be more aware how I use the water in my home.  Turning off the faucet while brushing my teeth, not taking long showers, and using minimal water for lawn care are simple ways that I can try to live in solidarity with those who lack an adequate supply of clean water.    

This last week has also given me an opportunity to think about what it means to thirst.  There have been times in my life when I was thirsty- for example after working in the yard on a hot summer day.  However, I have never experienced the kind of thirst that others in the world experience when they don’t know when and where they will get their next drink of clean water. Thirst is something that signals a physical need, and if we do not find drink to satisfy that need- we will die. 

So when we “thirst for God” do we really have this same deep need?  Do we experience this deep longing for God’s presence in our lives? Do we feel like we will die if we do not have God in our life?  I wonder if our lack of true physical thirst makes it difficult for us to even imagine what it means to thirst in such a deep way for God.  I had several opportunities this week to reflect on this when I drank water instead of my usual coffee, tea or milk.   Part of the issue for me is that I take so much of what I have for granted, and therefore do not recognize the gifts that I have or the Giver of the gifts.  God is the source of our life, the creator of the world, the source of our goodness and joy.  If we truly believed this, then I think we would proclaim,” Athirst is my soul for God, the living God, When shall I go and behold the face of God?”(Ps 42: 3) 

This deep longing or desire for God is planted within us by God because He longs for us.  It is through our encounter with Him in prayer that we can quench this thirst.  Our catechism states this so beautifully. “The wonder of prayer is revealed beside the well where we come seeking water: there, Christ comes to meet every human being. It is he who first seeks us and asks us for a drink. Jesus thirsts; his asking arises from the depths of God's desire for us. Whether we realize it or not, prayer is the encounter of God's thirst with ours. God thirsts that we may thirst for him.” (CCC 2560) God’s love for us is so great that He wants to draw us to Him.  To be drawn into this relationship with a God who loves us so deeply, should cause us to cry out as the psalmist, “Wait for God, for I shall again praise him, my savior and my God.” (PS 42:12) 

This past week has made me mindful of several things: I am grateful for the gift of water in my life, I am hopeful that our fasting, prayer and almsgiving will be able to help others in need of water through the support of Operation Rice Bowl, and I am filled with praise and thanksgiving that my God loves me so much- that He thirsts for me and He places that thirst for Him within me!  May our prayers quench our thirst for God until we see Him face to face!  

"Father, You thirst for us and you draw us to You through Your Son Jesus. May we find our rest in You through Your Spirit in our lives. May all that we do for those in need be a sign of your love for the world, we pray through Christ our LORD. Amen." 

Marylynn Herchilne