Rivers of Grace

“The angel brought me, Ezekiel, back to the entrance of the temple of the Lord, and I saw water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east” Ezekiel 47:1

The reading for today goes on to explain how this water flowing from the temple increased both in size and in depth, until it was a full river. “Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live…their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.” (47:12).

We are that temple, and the waters are the souls we touch through grace. As our lives continues, and we go forward, so should the grace increase in us. It happens because we find in the Lord “our refuge and our strength” (ps 46). When God is in our midst, we find life. For God’s creation did not end when we were made; he continues to fashion us, and requires our own share of responsibility in this work, through the choices we make.

“I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full” Jesus tells us. Life is a good barometer of where we are on the journey. If life is confusing or oppressive, it may well be we need to examine our path, and see if perhaps we need to go in another direction, or perhaps we need to bravely leave a job or profession to seek a different way. Our guide is what gives life. For, the river cannot increase if the life of grace does not flow abundantly.