Water and Spirit

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:1

Water and Spirit. March 29, 2026.

The rain showed up this morning, anointing the new-blooming tulips. Beads of water shine on their glossy, light yellow petals and long, smooth leaves. They are keeping their age-old tradition of blooming at Easter, and they are always early. It is now Palm Sunday, the beginning of Easter week. And the rain feels appropriate. It is right that the world should cry even while we celebrate. This morning at church, we read about Palm Sunday and the coming of our King, a story I know by heart at this point in life. But the Bible can never be read too many times. In fact, it is a hallmark of the Holy Spirit’s work when you come to realize that the more you read the Bible, the less you know about it.

This is because God’s Word is alive and breathing. God’s word is alive and breathing because He is the Word, speaking to us personally wherever we are in our lives. Additionally, by His grace, many of these truths are highlighted in daily occurrences in our own lives, revealing new insights on scriptures previously read. How many times have I read the story of the crucifixion since childhood, and yet I am 53 and still learning about it, as a little accident I had last year revealed to me.

It started with a smoothie I was making. In went the green powder and then some cucumber. Of course, I had to add some frozen strawberries to make it icy. The strawberries I pulled out of the freezer still had their stems on because I had been lazy and just shoved the whole package in the freezer when I bought them. Now I had to get the stems off, and proceeded to do so with a paring knife. This was not the smartest move, so I don’t recommend it. But all was fine until the knife slipped and went straight into the middle between my thumb and index finger, where it hit a tendon or bone.

Of course, it hurt, but I was more worried about the blood pouring out, as I did not want a trip to urgent care. My plan was to bandage it as soon as the bleeding stopped, but it wasn’t stopping. As I am holding my cut under running water, I began to feel a bit strange and realized I was going to pass out. So, in as calm a voice as possible, I said, “Honey, I think I need to go to urgent care,” just as if I was nicely asking him to pour me a cup of coffee. My husband knows me too well. He knows I will do cartwheels on the lawn to avoid going to the doctor’s. He knew something was wrong and instantly raced out of his office and got me to a chair just before I could fall on the floor.

For a few minutes, I went into shock and was non-responsive. My eyes stared straight ahead as my husband kept trying to get me to say something. But I just sat there in a catatonic state. He later told me he had never been so scared. I don’t even remember any of it until I finally came to a couple of minutes later. But the first thing I do remember is the excessive thirst that overcame me. Never have I experienced thirst like this, and never do I want to again. I cried out for water over and over again while my husband raced to get it. It was a consuming, agonizing, and primal thirst. Later, I looked up the symptoms of shock and found that excessive thirst is one of them. My mind immediately drew to the scriptures and the account of Jesus on the cross:

Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

John 19:28-30

Jesus had gone through the worst torture and agony anyone could go through. All of this would have absolutely sent His body into severe shock and dehydration. And giving one vinegar on hyssop for that thirst sounds even more torturous, even if meant well. And while my little accident was nothing compared to the blackest day in history over 2000 years ago, a new light shone on Jesus’s agony when he said, “I am thirsty”. Jesus’s thirst was a response to His severe shock. The humanity and the suffering Jesus went through for all of us translated in a whole new way to me. Never again will I read that verse the same.

To finish the story, my husband brought me water, which I inhaled and then promptly threw up. Cold shakes began, and I was taken to the emergency room. All of this drama for a single stitch. The whole incident is almost embarrassing, and yet, for that moment of insight, I am grateful. Just the tiniest bit of that pain that came through that day, but it brought the cross closer to my heart and the deep, deep price paid. My heart is full of gratitude for the amazing love of our Savior.

Have a beautiful day!