Drawing From the Well

"See, God has come to save me.  I will trust in him and not be afraid.  The Lord God is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.  With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation!  In that wonderful day you will sing:  'Thank the Lord!  Praise his name!  Tell the world what he has done.  Oh how mighty he is!  Sing to the Lord, for he has done wonderful things.  Make known his praise around the world."  Isaiah 12:2-5  NLT

This morning as I read this passage I felt God's loving conviction on my heart.  While I can tell you the day my heart was claimed for Christ as an 8 year old child and my salvation was secured in the heavens; I also confess to you that there are areas in my life that I still struggle with the difficult realities of life.  Moments of anxiousness, fear, concern, worry, or dealing with all the temptations this world has to offer seem to plague me.  In those moments, I find myself focused on my incapacity rather than on the fullness of God that is fully capable in all circumstances.  Friend, as a child of the King, we have access to God' s ultimate power and love to help us through all challenges if we will just seek after him and "drink deeply from the fountain of salvation" that we have through Christ.  I love the wording for verse 3 from Isaiah 12 in the NIV version, "With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation."  In those times, ladies would have to go gather the water they needed for the day at a local well.  My friend, we must go to the Father and draw our life-water from Him to help us for that day.  If a special need arises, we must go back to the well for an extra cup!   How are we to draw that life giving water from our Father?

I believe the following verses show us how to access that power and strength that we need from day to day.  When we thank Him for all that He has already done for us and praise Him for all that He is and is capable of doing in our life.  By telling and proclaiming to others what He has done for you and what He could do for them and by recognizing and respecting His mighty power and authority.  We must sing to Him and allow our praise of Him to transform our heart and mind.  Ultimately, we are to do our best to share His love all over the world.  It seems to me that daily we draw from our well when we spend time in deep prayer, praise, study of His word, and sharing Him with those around us and around the world.  What that looks like for me is not what that will look like for you.... and that is how it should be- a beautiful mosaic of God working in countless lives who are unique and far different from each other. 

I have struggled with fear of being in want and need ever since Reagan's lay off several years ago.  While God has ever provided and always met our needs, I still would stress about going back to that place where we lived on prayer for God to provide for our needs from day to day.  He did.  He was and is faithful.  Satan, however, likes to lie and make me fearful.  That is when I must run to the well and fill my cup to overflowing with God's praise, prayer and goodness to battle the lies of the evil one.  My friend, whatever your battle, God's well of salvation always stands full and it is always available.  All you need is to run to the well!  It is a daily- maybe even hourly- task, but God never fails you and a life lived in the fullness of God's life-giving salvation is freedom from all fears and temptations.  Drink and fill yourself with Him and live, my friend, truly live!