Air, water, food, light 

As I was thinking over what to put on the first page of this newsletter, I kept thinking of the natural elements, such as water, air, food and light and how they can be shown to be a part of our relationship with God. He must have been listening to my thoughts, because the above meme popped up on my Facebook page. But I want to rearrange the order based on how long a person could survive without that item.

  Air now moves to #1. The average person suffers brain damage after 3-4 minutes and can be deceased after 4-6 minutes without air. There are exceptions, but that is the average person’s life without air. How is air connected to our relationship with God? In Genesis 2:7, “then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.’

In Acts 2:2 “and suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.”  Air is the Ruach, the Holy Spirit, surrounding us with life and bringing understanding to our lives.

  Water is #2. the average person can survive only 3-5 days without any water. The human body is 55-78% water. The surface of the earth is 71% water. How does water connect us to God? First there was the great flood in Genesis, where in 9:15, God says “I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.”  However, the real connection is definitely through baptism. In Matthew 3:11, John says “I baptize you with Water for repentance, but he who is coming is mightier than I.”  In our own baptism, we are baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, thereby forever connected to the Triune God.

  Food is #3. The average person can survive for no more than three weeks without food. How is food connected to God? God provides all the food from the beginning. In Genesis 1:29-30, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food..” Jesus is called the bread of life. This is not to be taken literally, Jesus did not actually give his body to his disciples to eat at the Last Supper. He used bread to symbolize that He would give His body to be broken, beaten and hung on a cross in our place for our sins. This is repeated in Matthew 26:26, Mark 14:22, Luke 22:19 and 1 Corinthians 11:23:  “Take and eat, This is my body, given (broken) for you.”

  Finally, Light is #4. While the human body can survive in darkness; as long as there is air, water, and food, the lack of light can affect mood regulation and mental health. Seasonal affective disorder is usually a winter issue caused by the lack of light since the days are shorter. Additionally, the lack of sunlight exposure in any climate, due to indoor jobs, or working late shifts, leads to Vitamin D deprivation. How is light connected to God? God is the source of all light, in  Genesis 1:3-4. “Then God said let there be light, and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.” In John 8:12, “Jesus said to the people, I am the Light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life. Life does seem to be brighter for those with Christ in their lives. Not to say there is never any darkness for us, but knowing there is a light helps make the darkness not quite so dark.

 So, the four things we need to survive: Air, Water, Food and Light all come from God. He loves us so much, He wants us to live, so he provides what we need. He wants us to care for the Air and the Water to be able to grow the Food we need and to follow his Light, always.

Your sister in Christ,

Teresa Cooksey