When the Water Runs Out…
“…the wadi dried up…”
A Christian family was overcome with joy when they were able (finally!) to buy their own home. Oh, how much they enjoyed that mansion! The house was a jewel indeed—surrounded by all kinds of ornamental plants and trees and equipped with a first-class pool. They enjoyed many days together as a family around the pool or inviting some friends for barbecues.
One day, however, they lost their good jobs and their financial situation deteriorated. Their “wadi (small stream) dried up” and they were forced to sell their beautiful home. Their now meager resources only allowed them to rent an apartment in a not-so-good neighborhood. The years of comfort, security and privacy, flew south…never to return.
Why does God allow such calamities and incomprehensible misfortunes in our lives? In the case of that particular family, God was able to use them like never before, especially in the areas of evangelism and discipleship.
God worked in a mighty way through Elijah’s reversal of fortune. When the wadi dried up, he was forced to move out of his “comfort zone” and into new areas of ministry prepared beforehand by our Lord.
The “wadis” of our lives are those seasons of tranquility, prosperity and spiritual preparation. Drink therefore as much as you can now, because one day they might dry up and God will send us to strange places like “Zarephath” where thirsty souls long to drink of the living water we carry with us.
