Lessons I Learned From Nepal’s Water Crisis

Spending eight weeks in Nepal taught me the value of clean water and caused me to consider what kind of water I drink in spiritually.

Where does your drinking water come from? A well? A city’s water supply? Chances are you have access to clean water at the turn of a knob or press of a button, but much of the world doesn’t have that luxury. In Nepal extreme pollution contributes to the lack of clean drinking water. If you have easy, 24/7 access to clean water, you are in the minority of the world’s population.

In Scripture, God likens the Holy Spirit to fountains and rivers of clean, pure, living water (Isaiah 44:3; John 4:10-14; 7:37-39). If you are baptized, you have this fountain of living water in you! If you are a child or grandchild of such a person, you have access to these living waters (John 14:17; Acts 2:38-39).

Do we take water for granted?

In Nepal the only water that is safe to drink is bottled or boiled tap water. Prior to traveling to Nepal, I took clean water for granted!

Since God likens His Spirit to water, it made me question: Was I also taking His Spirit for granted? Do I thank Him daily for this blessing that very few people have access to at this time (Matthew 20:16)? Do I use it to grow and stay spiritually hydrated every day? Am I like the good and faithful servant, developing and growing in what God has given me, or am I simply hiding and neglecting it (Matthew 25:14-30)?

Toxic water

Water is plentiful in Nepal, especially when the monsoon season is in full swing. Yet most of that water will make you sick because it is toxic! Trash is thrown into the streets, and sewer systems often run into the rivers, contaminating the water supply.

Likewise, allowing sin to pollute our lives is spiritually toxic. Many doctrines, beliefs and lifestyle choices can easily poison those of us trying to live righteously (Proverbs 14:12). Do we use God’s Holy Spirit to drink in of His Word, or are we allowing the polluted water of the world to slowly seep into our lives?

Beyond appearances

We must be diligent to exercise discernment and rightly divide the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). One evening in Nepal, some of my friends ordered iced drinks. The drinks looked good, but later that night, both got very sick. We learned later that the ice in their drinks was made with unpurified water!

Many of the world’s ideals may appear pure at first glance—but they can contain toxic elements that will make us sick spiritually. God wants us to prove what is true and look beyond appearances (1 Thessalonians 5:21; John 7:24).

A time is coming when God will make His Spirit available to all who will accept it (Revelation 7:17; 22:1, 17). But you and I have access to that priceless gift now! It’s our responsibility to carefully guard against the toxic pollution of sin and drink in of God’s pure spiritual water daily.

To learn more about the crises facing the world’s water supplies, read “Water Woes.” For more about using God’s Spirit, see our series of articles on “The Fruit of the Spirit.”