March 8, 2026
Readings & Message
EXODUS 17: 1-7
Last Sunday’s Old Testament passage spoke of Abram, Sarai, and Lot traveling to their new land and this morning’s passage has us journeying with the Exodus folk…what is totally different in these two passages is that these folk are consumed and defined by fear whereas Abram, Sarai, and Lot were not…probably because of what they left behind – 7 plagues and a city bathed in blood (I’d be a little anxious too!)…and Moses stops in a place called ‘Rephidim’ where there is no water…interesting that a desert nomad would go to a place with no water…they usually moved from oasis to oasis and knew where they all were…and what the challenge in this passage may be is where in our own lives do we fail to pay attention to needed resources?...maybe things such as time, energy, creativity, sleep, silence and maybe play…
ROMANS 5: 1-11
What I can come up with in this letter which Paul is offering to the Christian congregation in Rome seems to be that suffering produces endurance which produces character which produces hope which does not disappoint…and this is a difficult passage to digest because when we watch the suffering which happens in our world and even in our own cities or congregations, sometimes hope is non-existent…it’s too painful of a place to be….yet…we sometimes focus on the negative and what Paul is urging us to do is to focus on those little pieces of joy and celebration which are always there…underneath all of the darkness and the pain…
JOHN 4: 5-42
In reading the Gospel passage, these words from Charles Swindoll came to mind: “We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.”…well this is what happened to the Samaritan woman at the well and I sense that she responded in love – to love…she had probably been punished enough by cultural expectations and some brokenness within…and what is incredible in this passage is the immediacy in which the Samaritan woman chose to act in responding to what had been planted in her…she heard, knew and understood that the time is now – not later…so I’m going to leave it all up to Fiona as she shares this with us in a dramatization format…
“FOCUSING ON THE ELEMENT OF WATER”
Last week I was in a place of restlessness when I had, as of yet, not come up with how I wanted to share my message which dealt with water – a theme which would speak to me and then in turn, I could share it with all of you and maybe it would also speak to you in your world…and part of me also said that maybe a theme is not as important as I make it out to be…but being a somewhat-organized person, I knew that if one would be telegraphed to me through the spiritual channels, it would make things a lot easier…you know, to have a focus…
So, I’m on the highway and keeping my eyes on the road but also thinking of my surroundings and it comes to me…maybe I just broke one of those ‘distracted driving laws’ because I took my hands off the wheel and went…yeh!!...and it has to do with journeying for that’s exactly what Jesus would be doing as the road to Jerusalem looms ever so much closer…and then I look around me as I’m driving down the highway and what’s all around me?...the elements of the earth…I could see water on the road as the weather was a bit warmer and puddles were forming…I could see earth, dry earth, dry ground…
You know…God speaks through those times of restlessness and opens new doors…God speaks to us on our journey…our Lenten journey this time to be a little more particular…
So today, the element that gave me a focus is water and the readings for today focus on this… the essence of life…something which if we didn’t have any, we’re done... water where Jesus was baptized…
So, what might be an interesting practice for Lent for yourselves is to think of the many ways to cut down on the use of water and act upon it…especially where Calgary once again goes into water restrictions…if we all did this, and corporations included, places like
Saskatchewan may be greener in the summer than they are at the present…the sometimes desert may burst into bloom…and maybe even some of the areas around here at certain times of the year could also feel this sort of metamorphosis…but I’m getting away from what I want to speak about…water and the importance of it and how the use of it impacts all of our lives…historically, the two most important feast days in the Church were Epiphany and Easter….when baptisms were celebrated…Advent and Lent (in which we are now immersed) were both seasons to prepare for baptism and for new life…think of all the biblical lessons involving water --- Creation…the Flood, the great flood…the Jordan River and all of the events that happened in it and around it…the crossing of the Red Sea…Moses striking the Rock and water coming out of it which you heard Don read…the Woman at the Well with Fiona’s dramatization…and of course the washing of the disciples feet…the Walking on the Water and the Calming of the Sea…and so on…many, many stories having to do with water and the significance of it and Jesus’ life was wrapped around so much of the stories of water…for Jesus is a part of every story in the biblical text… everything is inter-connected…all of you are inter-connected to everything that is…you are a part of the whole and the whole is a part of you…Jesus is history and the present and the future and so are we and the significance of water envelops all of us……
So, a reflection to Psalm 23 comes to mind (and by-the-way, it’s one of our scripture passages next Sunday) and God is spoken of as a shepherd who leads the helpless sheep in “green pastures”…and Isaiah states that when the Messiah comes, creation will be restored…“the desert will blossom”…even the driest, dead places will be green gardens…are you getting it?...
Wherever Jesus sets foot, all miraculously bursts into bloom…life… abundant life…for he is the water of life…and this is the good news for this third Sunday in Lent…
When you fill your bathroom sink up with warm water in the morning and wash your face, with the water trickling down your cheeks, smile into your mirror and give thanks that you, too, are the water of life, possibly for yourself and for others for each of you are truly a blessing and you know ‘who’ you are….Amen.