“For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me—the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!”

Jeremiah 2:13

On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)

John 7:37-39

When life provides unexpected challenges, we respond. Sometimes we respond with faith and other times we respond with disbelief. It is when our faith wavers and we turn away from the fountain of living water that we lose hope.

The Lord’s words to Jeremiah always cause me to catch my breath. It is one thing to turn away from the fountain of life, but then we go one step further and look to things that cannot provide us with refreshment. It is the equivalent of trying to hold water in a cracked cistern. It just doesn’t work.

If you lost hope or your hope wavers, check your water supply. Are you accessing the fountain of life or have you traded the purest, freshest source for a poor substitute? Where do you go for life-giving refreshment?