In these “dog-days” of summer, dehydration is something that we have to constantly guard against. Paradoxically, the more dehydrated we become the less capable our bodies are of absorbing life-sustaining fluids even when we do drink water. There is a similar spiritual dehydration that occurs when we fail to imbibe the life-giving waters of God’s living Word and our hearts grow dry, hard, and impervious to the sound of God’s voice. Tragically, the further we drift from the presence of God and the thirstier our souls become, the less adept we are at recognizing the fountain at which to slake our thirst. Having become strangers to God, we become strangers to his Word which we can no longer truly hear. And thus Amos warns that in this condition they shall wander from sea to sea and rove from the north to the east in search of the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it. It is well, therefore, for us to recommit to our ongoing conversion and through our fidelity to daily lectio divina allow that living spring to slake our thirst and sustain us on our homeward journey.
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