Uplook - January 18, 2025

Beloved of God,

It is a cold clear winter day in the Seattle area.  There have been warnings in the media about care concerning freezing water pipes because of the cold.   One of the remedies suggested was to keep a small “drip” of water flowing to avoid the water freezing in the pipes.   This caused me to consider the various qualities of flowing water.   In the summer and when things are very warm we are often warned not to leave “standing water” because it becomes a breeding place for mosquitoes and other insects.  We also know that water which does not flow soon becomes stagnant and unfit to drink.   Even the “still waters” of Psalm 23 are not stagnant waters but rather waters which flow into and then out of a shallow pool remaining a fresh and available source of clean pure water from which the shepherds flock can drink.   Now back to the winter time. When it is cold we understand the effect on standing water…it freezes much more quickly and in the case of a confined space like water pipes can expand to the point of bursting a pipe which creates havoc.   So we can interpolate spiritually from this metaphor that standing or stagnant spiritual water in cold difficult times  is just as dangerous as in the warm easy times.  We must ask God to keep the flow of His Spirit moving within our hearts.  That means both flowing into our hearts by prayer, scripture reading, and fellowship AND flowing out of our hearts by worship, sharing our testimony, and staying flexible (not frozen) in our work for the Lord.   It is our prayer that no matter the weather outside that the our hearts are overflowing with God’s grace, love, joy, and peace.   So…this weekend (in Seattle at least), bundle up and try to stay warm.  Don’t let your pipes freeze by keeping the water flowing.

God bless,
BB
Rev. William E. McKibben
Senior Pastor