Gen 43:1-2
Now the famine was severe in the land. And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the grain which they had brought from Egypt, that their father said to them, “Go back, buy us a little food.”
Famine! Does Jacob go out and re-dig the wells? No, he goes and buys supplies from another land, and as we know from the following scriptures it costs him all that they own. They lose possession of their Promised Land, and eventually end up serving a foreign power for 400 years.
So we see that our enemies will come and try to chase us from our source of living water, or try to destroy our deep faith. Or maybe we just dump rubbish into them until they are no longer any good. We are even known to poison our own wells. For many centuries now we have gradually had the Gospel message corrupted with bad doctrines, bad teachings, and paganisms. No wonder we have trouble living the ‘life in abundance’ Jesus promised.
Amos 8:11
“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God, “That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the Lord.
We saw this famine between Malachi and John the Baptist. 400 years of spiritual drought. I believe we live in a time in this land of spiritual drought too. Look around, how many of your neighbours are spiritually dry, perishing by not being fed by the Living Water of Christ Jesus. How can we help them? I often hear people of God say, “God’s going to do a new thing”. But the message should be that it’s time to keep on digging into the well of the Lord’s Holy Spirit! It’s not a time for something new, but a time of being resolute in our stance. It’s a time to re-dig into the wells of spiritual truth. Maybe it’s time to dig the wax out of our spiritual ears as well!
In the Book of Acts (11:28), the Holy Spirit warns the people of Jerusalem through the prophet Agabus that a famine was coming. Did he warn them so that people of Jerusalem could get up and leave? No, He provided for them by the gathering of supplies from afar through the efforts of His people. He did not leave the saints in Jerusalem to struggle on their own, but sent others to bring help.
So too today, we are not left forgotten and abandoned. Our loving Father in Heaven is sending others to help nourish us and our community. No famine is for ever! Every time of want is preceded by, and then followed by, a time of plenty. So, stay in your Promised Land, dig-in and trust on the Lord.
This message about digging in and replenishing your well also relates to other areas of our lives. It can relate to our businesses or jobs, and most importantly to our relationships. In our society today it is too easy, and too often encouraged, for us to move from one relationship to another as soon as we feel that it’s drying up. We think it’s easier to move to another than to dig-in and to find the deeper fulfilment in our current situations.
