Lessons from a Texas Drought

I am writing this week’s post from Manitowoc, WI. They are experiencing near record temperatures this week (and maybe blaming it on visiting Texans here on a mission trip).  Those near record temps have been in the 90s.  And they are praying that they don’t get any more rain for awhile … a little different from back home. In thinking about this temperature and rain issue, I am revisiting a Life Matters I wrote back in the summer of 2000.  I think it fits, so—with some minor adjustments—here it is again.

DROUGHT CONTINUES.  Day after day after day after day … you get the point ... we continue with record heat and no rain.  Everyone is hot, tired, and wants rain.  No kidding!

While observing this drought and heat-wave, I have been thinking about another kind of drought--a spiritual drought.  I would almost guarantee that you have been there at some point in your life.  A time when you’ve lost spiritual energy and vitality ... church is boring ... Bible study is dry ... prayer seems hollow ... enthusiasm wanes ... burdens seem heavier ... relationships seem distant ... and you haven't heard God speak in a very long time.  As I ponder this, I am convinced that these two droughts are essentially the same in terms of the response needed.  Let me share a few brief lessons from a Texas Drought.

1. Water your foundation. The extreme hot and dry conditions will cause expansion, shifting, and cracking in your home's foundation, which can cause problems in the rest of the structure.  You need to focus some water directly on the foundation to keep those shifts to a minimum.  In a spiritual drought, you also need to water your foundation--concentrate on the basics. Remember that prayer is simply talking to God.  He is listening.  Remember that God gave us the Bible not so we could be knowledgeable, but so we could hear Him speak.  Getting back to basics means remembering the basic purpose of spiritual activities and using them to renew our fellowship with God.

2. Pay attention to your limited resources. I don't have enough water to keep my 1.3 acres green and thriving.  I have to focus on the trees and shrubs that need the most of my water resources. In a spiritual drought, you also need focus. This is not the time for doing MORE things, it is the time for doing RIGHT things.  It is a time for eliminating the good things that keep us from the best things.  It is a time for good stewardship of our time and energy.

3.  Consider your neighbors.  If I water close to the property lines, I don't worry about getting water on my neighbor's property.  If I can help him a little, it makes for a better neighborhood.  In a spiritual drought, we need to avoid being totally egocentric.  I may have limited resources, but God wants me to use them to benefit others who also have limited resources.  Galatians 6:2 says, "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."

4. Watch for negative attitudes. Sometimes those “scattered showers” we hear about will show up at your house, but not somewhere else.  The places that didn’t get rain will not necessarily be excited for you.  When your spiritual drought begins to lift, there will always be someone who wants to measure you're experience against their own.  They will tell you not to get too excited.  They will seek to share their misery.  Share your water instead.

One last lesson--it will rain again sometime.  In fact it's raining somewhere right now.  God is still in the rain business both naturally and spiritually and your life matters to Him.  Don't lose hope.  Jesus said, "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" (Matthew 7:11)