How thirsty are you? - 13 February 2024

The thirst of a 23-year-old American woman for the popular Stanley Cups Quencher flask cups drove her to break the law. At a sports store in California, the woman loaded a trolley full of flask cups into the trunk of her car without paying for them. The traffic police were called and the woman was pulled over before discovering the flask cups worth $2 500 (or R47 071) in the back of her vehicle.

This woman’s “thirst” for the popular and expensive flask cups made me think of how we can sometimes develop a “thirst” for the wrong things in our lives – a bigger house, a better marriage, more money in the bank, higher-achieving children. There is nothing wrong with having good aspirations to improve a current situation. Yet, if these “aspirations” are not managed, they can easily turn into a feeling of dissatisfaction or greed. In such a case, we no longer see what we have and what we should be grateful for, but only what we don’t have.

In Luke 12:15, Jesus says: “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Also in John 7:37b-38, Jesus reminds us: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ”

Do you still live gratefully for what you have, or does a “thirst” for something you don’t have drive you to do something irresponsible?

Prayer: Father God, thank you very much for coming to quench my thirst. Please help me stay grateful for what I have in my life. I ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen