Flow of the Spirit

By Jon Skillman

There are several things that sadden me: The sound of a straw vacuuming the last gurgle of a milkshake, the last bite of a donut and the end of my favorite song. I can quickly remedy these trivial downers by order another shake, grabbing another donut or hitting replay on my CD player.

But there is one thing that brings a certain sadness I cannot readily overcome…the sight of a dry creek bed. A dry creek bed just seems so…you know…dry...so dead. I think there are two separate and distinct reasons upon which my sadness rides.

The first is the sight of a dry, natural or physical creek bed. In my younger and heathen-ish days, I had the opportunity to work the cool, clear riffles and pools of many coastal and mountain streams, attempting to trick a trout with bits of feather and fur. The solitude and serenity I enjoyed brought a life and spirit to the current that tugged and swirled around my legs. And I swear I heard voices calling to me…but when I looked around…no one was there.

A dry creek bed saddens me because the once moss-covered rocks have been bleached to a pale crust…there’s no flow nor direction. The sparkle is gone, and no babbling voices rise to catch my ear… there’s no life nor spirit to be found.

Now, as a Christian, I experience a second and most profound sadness at the sight of the spiritually dry creek of an unbeliever. There is no flow of the spirit because they have no source, no living headwater to sustain them, no tributaries to fill them with the spirit. Nothing flows into them; nothing flows through them and there is no current to float them into salvation and on into an eternity with God.

And then there are the dry creeks of those who know the source of living water but have blocked its flow with their own will and selfish and sinful desires. This prevents the spirit from reaching their hearts and stunting spiritual growth.

We cannot cause a physical stream to flow but we are commanded to point the lost to the source of the spirit. We are to help those whose spirit has stagnated behind selfish desires to restore the flow into themselves.

Periodically we need to honestly check the Spirit’s flow within ourselves…is it running clear and deep, has it been diverted by our own will, or have we lost touch with the source? The answers may sadden us. I think I better grab another donut.