When the Well Runs Dry

Have we experienced that sometimes we thought that serving God messes our life?

That at times we thought that life mocks us.

Being a servant of God, we are not exempted from frustrations, disappointments, and failures.

We are zealous in our service as Ministry heads, giving our best talks as speakers, and spending our time to its maximum but it’s wondering that there is a moment when we asked ourselves, “Are all of these worth the benefits?”.

We are glad to hear that the person we prayed for were their prayers were granted. The one sister you counseled left your session full of hope and energized, but when you’re alone, you realized you still have issues and concerns that you’re hiding and trying to figure out why your prayers are not answered.

Regularly we attended the Gawain but what we expected is not what we experienced. You lost your job; your partner may have left you or until now you are still sick. You always shout and declare “Matagumpay or victorious”, “Mayaman na” or wealthy but is that what you are already right now?

Let us just be real.

Life is easier when everything is fine that is why people reject difficulties, avoid problems, and evade any form of discomfort.

It is easy to serve God when everything is well.

But what if the well runs dry?

Will we still be serving? Will we say it is enough?

WE ARE NOT EXEMPTED

Prophet Elijah was a noble and miracle worker who fought the spread of Baalism in Israel being promoted by Jezebel during the reign of King Ahab.

He had done dozens of miracles and lived a life zealous in serving the Lord of Host. In fact, all the prophet of God was killed and yet he remained standing for God.

But Elijah is a man like us, and despite his strong character and passion for serving God, he experienced the feeling of emotional and spiritual dryness. He felt so afraid for his life that he fled into the wilderness when he was threatened to be killed by Jezebel. He sat down under the juniper tree and he requested for himself that he might die. He said,

“It is enough; now, O Lord, take my life for I am not better than my fathers.”

Remember also Peter and the disciples that after three years of being with the Lord, they felt so confused that they don’t know what to do so they go on a retreat, They went back to where they were relaxed, and they went fishing.

Are we better than the Prophet Elijah and Peter and the disciples in zealous for the Lord? Are we more than these servants who made miracles and experienced God’s miracle after miracle?

Yet, in their lifetime they experience that well runs dry.

LIFE TANK ANALOGY

No matter how arduous our desires serving Him and no matter how passionate we are in our service; we are not relieved from experiencing the symptoms of life’s drought.

Because like a well or a tank reservoir, the water level will always depend on the water intake and the amount of water going out of it.

We consider ourselves as a well or a reservoir or we called it a “LIFE TANK” and the one that fills this life tank to make it full or overflow is the life we received from God and the people that surround us.

Our life is full when we continue to receive the overflowing grace and inspiration from God. The other source of our life that make it full is our relationship with people. We need human love, connections, appreciation, and motivation.

Without having either of the two, our life is not complete. Our life happiness does not depend only on the amount of water that fills in the tank because life should be a balance.

There should be a balance between supply and demand. Life is wasted when you have an overflowing supply yet you don’t use it to its purpose. We have to divert and channel this life to something worthwhile because if not, it’s either we waste it or the supply shall be cut off from the source.

But it’s not enough that there is supply, dryness, and emptiness happen when the demand exceeds the supply.

WHEN THE WELL RUNS DRY

Maybe we are like the zeal and passion of Prophet Elijah but it will come to a point when we will also be asking ourselves, “Are all of the worth?”

We cannot doubt the supply from God but still, we experience the symptoms of drought when we reach the dryness of level in our life.

We could be having financial dryness, mental and emotional drought, or either physical or spiritual drought.

Out of these symptoms, where you are right now?

The severity of our drought and how we face it will determine in which direction we are heading. It is either we are totally draining or just part of our training.

Let us examine what makes our Life Tank reach the low level because it is either by our own doing or just merely part of our training.

But today, the wells run dry for a purpose.

GOD’S GRACE & GREATNESS IS MORE MAGNIFIED IN OUR DRYNESS

Spiritual dryness is when we feel that God is distant, or we struggle to grow spiritually. Sometimes spiritual dryness is due to personal sins because our sins create a barrier in our relationship with God.

And when that relationship is tarnished, the joy of our salvation in us slowly dwindles.

The symptoms of spiritual dryness become more visible due to people having financial dryness or emotional and physical pain which makes it difficult for us to focus on God or in our prayer.

Our dryness brought by our sin invites us to experience His grace.

But Elijah’s case is different, it came out of his fear of losing his life so he fled into the wilderness and requested that his life would be ended. Elijah manifested his fear; it manifested his weakness.

When we experience a dry season in our life does not mean that we are weak.

We cannot judge people who went through a dry experience because sometimes God speaks to us through this ordeal.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

Elijah experienced God’s greatness despite his weakness.

We leave to God what we can’t control and allow Him to do exactly what we cannot do.

During the drought season for three years, Elijah experiences the greatness of God through his provisions. God sent ravens bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening. 1 King 17: 1-5

And when the brook dried up because there was no rain in the land, he went to Zarephath and directed to a widow there to supply him with overflowing food.

2. GOD’S VOICE IS MORE AUDIBLE IN OUR DRYNESS

In verse 9, he came to a cave and lodged there when he heard a voice from the Lord. He said to Elijah, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord but the Lord was not in the wind.

After the wind, there was an earthquake and after the earthquake was a fire, and after the fire was a sound of a gentle blowing.

But the Lord was not in the earthquake nor in the fire but in the silence of our heart we can hear Him.

We can hear God speaking to us more clearly in the quietness of our dry season.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI back in 2008 says “In these moments of darkness, he [God] speaks through the mystery of his silence. Hence, in the dynamic of Christian revelation, silence appears as an important expression of the word of God” (VD, No. 21).

In our quiet and dry seasons of life, we can hear God speaking clearly to us. Giving us the direction to take.

He gives us the steps to make.

3. WHEN WATER IS DEPLETED, WE APPRECIATE THE WATER WE MISSED

It is only when something is lacking that we missed and appreciate it.

God allows dryness and our resources to be depleted not because He punishes us but to show us the importance of the value of blessings, we received from Him.

You only know the significance of a person when he left.

We only know the value of our health when we are sick.

We only appreciate the importance of our parent’s advice when we are already facing some troubles.

Don’t wait for that person to leave before you say thank you. Don’t wait for 40 before you think about saving for your retirement. Start it now.

Some people felt spiritual dryness because they thought what they are doing is not important. After all, no one recognizes them. Nobody appreciates them.

Sometimes we became the reason for other people to feel that the well is dry because we are so stingy in giving praise. It’s not because they are asking for it, but as a human, we need someone to appreciate our worth.

Be sensitive to other needs. Remember that the other source of happiness aside from God’s grace and inspiration is people’s love, connection, and appreciation.

Human needs not only God’s inspiration, but we human also needs love, connection, and motivation.

For some of us, if they don’t appreciate our presence, make ourselves so valuable that they will appreciate our absence.

4. WHEN LIFE IS SLOWING, IT DOES NOT MEAN IT’S DRAINING, IT MIGHT JUST BE PART OF OUR TRAINING

When everything is slowing, just take a pause for a while because the problem might not be because the source is blocked. It’s not because the supply is less in your LIFE TANK.

Maybe because God is preparing for you to be ready for the next assignment.

God asked Elijah, “What are you doing here Elijah?” For Elijah answer is a manifestation that his life is draining because of his high expectation.

He was a zealous servant yet what he was experiencing was the opposite of what he should receive.

He had done a lot of miracles, but he was running for his life.

But God’s question has a different answer. He asked Elijah to go forth on the mountain of the Lord. God is setting Elijah to the next mission He had for Him, to return his way to the wilderness of Damascus to anoint another king of Haram and train and anoint the prophet who will replace him.

Yes, serving God may have caused us draining of our energy but God teaches us to appreciate His works.

At the moment when everything is dry, we can still see that He never stops.

He asked Elijah to arise and eat because the journey is too great for him. 1 King 19: 7

Even when we are slowing down, never back down. No backsliding.

5. OUR CAPACITY TO GIVE DEPENDS ON OUR ABILITY TO RECEIVE

We are a limited resource.

Your capacity to give depends on your ability to receive because you cannot give more than what you receive.

We can only give what we have.

You cannot teach forgiveness if you don’t practice forgiveness.

You cannot advise investment if you don’t practice and have any investment.

You cannot teach someone to sing well if you don’t know how to sing at all.

We need to be whole to give to people.

Life is draining us out when we are giving too much more than what we have.

Dryness happened when there is more demand than the supply. I can only give 1,000 AED when the money in my pocket is a thousand.

Our lives become more purposeful and focused when we know our limitations and when we know that we are only a limited resource.

We value our time and connect with people whom we can able to accommodate and ministers.

Our love tank will run dry when more people are taking from you rather than feeding you.

As a speaker, I have more people to feed than feeding me.

For those who have not yet maximized their Life tank, increase your reservoir to bless more.

Expand yourself to accommodate but learn how to balance life otherwise, it will drain your energy and suck the life out of you.

Increase your capacity to receive. God will not judge us for something we do not have. He will only demand us the fruit on the bases of gifts or seeds we received because He is a just God.

There will always be times that our Life tank shall be slowly draining because of outside forces.

Like water coming out of its tank because of evaporation, there will always be circumstances in our life that are out of our control that affect the level of our Life tank. We might lose our job, and our relationships may not be well because your partner had given up holding on to your relationship. Your loved ones might be ill and it is draining your finances, etc…

But remember this, when the level goes down beyond our control, we must go back to our source. Let God who is more than enough fill our Life Tank.

As a servant, we must be sensitive to filling the life tank of others whom we know their well is running dry.

May our God continue to fill your Life Tank always,

Mikesendon