Spiritual Hydration

1st Peter 2:2-3

Water is one of the most crucial elements in a healthy life, and the list of benefits from proper hydration is practically endless. For example, water is the key component in the body’s thermal regulatory system; water helps to maintain proper muscle tone, which in turns aids in proper muscle contraction; water allows the Endocrine glands to function properly, which influences virtually every cell, organ and function of our body; water helps our skin look and feel healthy; and water increases energy by allowing the liver to convert stored fat into energy more efficiently. A matter of fact, one of the only authentic concerns I could find regarding water is that we don’t drink enough of it. Maintaining proper hydration is a discipline, it doesn’t come natural for us. Thus the average person lives his or her live in a partial state of dehydration. Therefore, we need to remind ourselves on a regular basis to drink more water. However, most people wait until they feel thirsty before they chose to hydrate. Unfortunately, thirst has proven to be a poor indicator of proper hydration. By the time our body feels the sensation of thirst, we are already dehydrated by 1% to 2% of our body mass. Even at this minimal level of dehydration our bodies take a noticeable hit in performance and health. Thirst, therefore, is nothing more than our body’s warning sign that we have already gone too long without adequate hydration. It is in essence our brain’s last ditch effort to get our attention and intake more fluids.

The same can be said regarding our spiritual life, as well. The average Christian, regrettably, lives his or her live in a partial, if not critical, state of spiritual dehydration. Often we wait until we need God, or until the desire for God is overwhelming before we seek His truth. By this point it is apt to say that we have already gone too long without Him, putting at risk our overall spiritual health.

Peter wrote, "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good (1 Peter 2:2-3)." The readers of this fantastic letter are encouraged to crave pure spiritual milk. They are not told that this craving will come naturally, or that they would accept it willingly. Rather, they are simply told to do it. Peter wrote this in the imperative - it was a command, a charge for one’s personal volition to seek the Lord. With all other parts of their former life behind them, they now need to make seeking His truth a daily practice.

As with any form of adequate hydration, this too is a discipline, one that must be taken very seriously if we are to grow to maturity as believers in Christ.Our spiritual hydration is one that we must remind ourselves to take part in on a daily basis. Do not risk spiritual dehydration by waiting until you need Him. Do not wait until the desire to be in His presence is overwhelming before you seek his face. Rather, make your craving for God’s truth a daily practice. Long for it; desire it; hunger for it as if it were the very source of life itself - and it is. Staying spiritually hydrated is a discipline – a discipline that begins with daily practice   [mp]

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Michael D'Urbano
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