I was sitting in my backyard yesterday afternoon – soaking up a bit of sunshine, listening to the soothing sound of the man-made waterfall that my “Household Hero” built last summer, and contemplating the greatness of God. In my mind, I kept going back to an image that I read in the writings of John Piper, the man who is my mentor although he knows it not!
Piper speaks of God as being like a self-replenishing, overflowing, all-satisfying mountain stream who is honored when we come to Him, helpless and empty, and drink deeply from Him. He is exalted when we look to Him and to His fullness as the answer to our needs. He delights in spilling over to satisfy the thirst of our souls and is greatly glorified when we come to Him with empty hands and expectant hearts, believing Him to be a gracious giver.
In the midst of these musings, I looked up to see a robin perched on the branch of a nearby dogwood tree, eyeing the flowing water. It was clear that he wanted to get a drink, and it was equally clear that he was reluctant to do so. He was quite skittish, and kept retreating back to hide in the safety of the leaves. After advancing and retreating a number of times, he finally flew off, still thirsty, never having ventured to the waterfall.
No sooner had the robin departed, when a young, male cardinal landed on the rocks where the water pools at the bottom of the fountain. He glanced about, then quickly dipped his beak in for a drink. He raised his head, looked about again, took a second drink, and then off he went. His movements were furtive and he seemed to be in a hurry – I guess he had places to go and things to do.
By this point I could see that God had a lesson for me in all this, so I watched and waited to see what would happen next. I was not disappointed. In no time at all, a small sparrow landed at the edge of the waterfall. He cocked his head, glanced up and down, and then headed straight for the deepest part. At first, he merely lowered his head and took a few drinks, but before long he had hopped completely in and had immersed his entire body in the stream. He kept splashing about and soaking his feathers in the cool water. He stayed for quite some time, seemingly delighted with his discovery of this source of refreshment. When he finally did fly off, he only went as far as the bird feeder a few feet away, where he perched nibbling contentedly…hmmm…
Suffice it to say, I long to be more like that little sparrow. I don’t want to shrink back in fear like the robin, and I don’t want to take just a few sips of nourishment and then busily be on my way like the cardinal. I want to linger in God’s presence and drink deeply of the life-giving, soul-satisfying water that is found only in Him. I want to immerse myself in His goodness and delight myself in His presence with joyful abandon, fully expecting to have my thirst quenched.
