Waters of Life, Waters of Death

Holy God, holy and merciful, holy and mighty,

    you are the river of life,

    you are the everlasting wellspring,

    you are the fire of rebirth.

Glory to you for oceans and lakes, for rivers and creeks.

Honor to you for cloud and rain, for dew and snow.

Your waters are below us, around us, above us:

    our life is born in you.

You are the fountain of resurrection.

At this font, holy God, we pray:

Breathe your Spirit into this water,

    and into all who come here to find new life.

Illumine our days.

Enliven our bones.

Dry our tears.

Wash away the sin within us,

    and drown the evil around us.

Satisfy all our thirst with your eternal fountain,

    and bring to birth the body of Christ,

    who lives with you and the Holy Spirit,

    one God, now and forever.  Amen

Several years ago I found this prayer online when the ELCA was developing the new Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal. We use this prayer when someone is baptized. I think the images capture the breadth of what water means to those who live on this planet. We are surrounded by water. We are made of water. Water is Life. It should not be surprising that New Life is found in the water-rich sacrament of baptism.

I have lived a majority of my life in the upper-Midwest where water is abundant. I know the two faces of water well. I've played in the clear, cold waves of the Great Lakes and have heard the stories of winter-storm waves that swallow large ships. I've stood on the banks of the Mississippi peacefully flowing by and I've watched it overflow and wash away farms and homes. I've fished the crystal-clean spring-fed lakes of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota in summer and have seen the rusted remains of vehicles that fell through the winter ice. I been in blizzards and then gazed in wonder the next day at the beauty and stillness of a winter-white landscape. I've been pelted by hail and run for cover only to emerge as the storm passes to stand in the soft rain and see a rainbow color the sky.

Water brings life. Water brings death. 

We will never change this fact. But we can change the fact that so many people get sick and/or die because of the lack of clean water. Here are some things that I have done in the past year to help conserve clean water and to help others find it:

1. At Christmas I asked people to make a donation to a water charity in place of giving me a gift. Almost $400 was given and I didn't miss a thing.
2. I received a reusable, thermal water bottle and I fill it with filtered tap water from home. I have reduced my consumption of bottled water to less than 24 (compared to the 200 bottles/year for the average American)
3. I reduced the water I use when I shower by turning off the water when I lather up and then turn it back on when I rinse. This is way easier in the summer than in the winter.
4. My wife and I are installing a 50 gallon rain barrel to collect rainwater from the roof to be used to water the flower beds. We might make it 2.
5. I joined the high school youth in leading the congregation to provide over $10,000 to charity: water; a non-profit organization. This money will make it possible for water wells to be drilled in 2 villages where the people do not have access to clean drinking water. We also used the time to raise awareness of water issues locally and around the world.

When I think about it, this isn't very much and I've hardly noticed a difference in my life at all. But if each of us did 5 small things to make a difference it would have a huge impact. 

Are you willing to do something to tip the scales in favor of water that brings life?


For more blogs on the issue of water go to the Blog Action Day Website.