BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

Why Stay Thirsty? Notice the phrase “come ye to the waters.” That’s the first thing God tells us to do because waters, in the Bible, represent the life of God. Until we come to Him and receive His life, nothing else in those verses will work for us. Without Him, we won’t be able to buy without money. Without God, we’ll have only ourselves to depend on. We’ll have to toil and struggle to get what we want; and even if we manage to do so, we’ll still feel dissatisfied. We’ll waste our life running after things that, once we get them, don’t give us any peace. I don’t want to do that and I’m sure you don’t either. It makes no sense. Jesus said if you seek first the kingdom of God—His ways of doing and being right—everything in the natural realm will be added to you as well (Matthew 6:33). So why would you keep seeking material things first and stay spiritually thirsty when you can have it all by coming to God and drinking His waters of life? “But I don’t know how to come to God’s waters of life,” someone might say. It’s simple. You receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. He’s the only way to God. “I am the way, the truth, and the life:” He said, “no man cometh unto the Father, but by me…. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (John 14:6; 1 John 5:12). This is a vital truth that even some people who call themselves “Christians” haven’t understood: You don’t get the eternal God kind of life just by joining a church. You don’t get it just by being religious and trying to behave yourself. You receive eternal life when you believe on Jesus and make Him your Lord. So, if you’ve never done that, I encourage you to do it right now. It only takes one decision. Just say, “Jesus, I choose You to be the Lord of my life. I believe You came to earth and paid the price for my sins and rose from the dead so that I could be made whole. By faith I receive You as my Savior, and I give my life to You.” It’s that easy. When you pray that from your heart, all your sins are washed away and you are instantly born again on the inside. The Spirit of God comes to live in you and becomes within you “a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14) so that you can start living the God kind of life! How do you learn to live that kind of life? By doing the second thing God tells us to do in Isaiah 55:2-3: “Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live.” In 6,000 years of Bible history, that’s all God has ever asked of His people. He’s only asked us to hear and do what He says. Every command or instruction He’s ever given us is for our good. So, when we take His Word into our hearts and live on it, we experience the good life He has planned for us. When we live like Jesus said, “not…by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4), no matter what happens in this world, we can continue to enjoy a rich, abundant, satisfying life. In Proverbs 4 God says it this way: “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (verses 20–23). Attend to God’s Word means “give it your attention.” Put it first place in your life and schedule so that you get it in your heart in abundance. When the Word gets in you in abundance it changes your thinking. It brings you into agreement with God so that you’re working with Him instead of against Him. It causes faith to rise up in you so that you can receive what He has promised. One way you attend to the Word is by going to a good church where it’s being preached. Revelation comes easier when you’re listening to a man or woman of God who knows the Word and is anointed to minister it. With their help you can learn things faster than you can trying all by yourself to dig out of the Bible all the answers you need. Of course, in addition to hearing the Word at church, you also need to read and study your Bible at home. Just as you put natural food into your physical body every day, you need to “eat” God’s Word daily. It’s not enough to just hear a sermon once or twice a week. To grow spiritually as God intends, you need to continually feed on and heed His Word. BVOV : 29

• Cover