The Fifth Word: “I Thirst”

Presence, Dawn Waters Baker. 48 x 48 in., Oil on canvas. Private collection.

Unfurl, Dawn Waters Baker. 24 x 24 in., Oil on canvas. Private collection.

Come and Find Me, Dawn Waters Baker. 48 x 48 in., Oil on canvas. Private collection.

“Today He Who Hung the Earth” from the album The Very Best of English Orthodox Chant. Medieval Orthodox hymn performed by Father Apostolos Hill and Liturgia Ensemble.

Week Six: The Fifth Word: “I Thirst”

The Missionaries of Charity, founded in 1950 by Mother Teresa, today operate 758 houses for the poor in 139 countries throughout the world. Located above each chapel entrance in these facilities are the words “I THIRST, I QUENCH.” During her lifetime Mother Teresa wrote, “[Our] aim is to quench the thirst of Jesus…He spoke of his thirst [on the cross]—not for water—but for love, for sacrifice…His love, his thirst is infinite. Our aim is to ceaselessly quench the thirsting God by our love and the love of the souls we bring to him.”

Although the Savior of the World suffered insatiable physical thirst as His body succumbed to hypovolemic shock, His plaintive request appears to be more spiritual than temporal. Christ’s thirst for our affection can only be satisfied when we in turn hunger and thirst after Him. The author of Psalm 42 declared, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” Like all mammals, deer seek water when they get thirsty, but instinctively flee to water when they are in danger or have been wounded. Likewise, we must continually drink deeply from that “well that never runs dry” and find protection from the dangers that threaten us in the “Fountain of Life.”

The thirsting Christ became a “drink offering” to provide hydration for a dying world in desperate need of lifesaving fluids. Through the shedding of His blood, He quenched and quenches thirst. “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37–38). Thirst, yearning, and love are inextricably intertwined. Cardinal Basil Hume wrote, “To long for the beloved, to yearn, to pine for the beloved—[is] to be thirsty.” Christ’s poignant words to His followers “I was thirsty and you gave me drink” (Matthew 25:35), or to the Samaritan woman “Give me a drink” (John 4:7), are a rhetorical device used to invite His listeners to enter into a relationship of abiding love—Christ thirsts for us as we in turn thirst for Him.

Poetry:

“Ocean Water”
by Dasha Kelly Hamilton

The ocean pushes back
Alive and vigorous
The heritage of habitat
Leans against expectation
Muscles its due respect
Without regard
Without warning
Without reorienting the ones
With swimming pool perspectives
Limitations of consistent temperatures
and painted cement walls

The ocean rumbles its sovereignty
Full weight of freedom on my
skin

#BASIC

Dad, you’re so basic. This is my teenage daughter’s favorite insult of me––Dad, you’re so extra. This is my preteen son’s favorite insult of me––Dad, that’s so mid. This is their reaction to my ideas for family night. No matter what I do or say, even if it’s in the exact same situation, I’m either too little or too much or just too mediocre for them. Thus is the predicament of raising kids in the generation of TikTok.

This week we meditate on Jesus’ fifth word: I thirst. He who created the world and gathered the seas now desperately needs water as his body surrenders to thirst. He who made the human body now yields to its basic need.

About 70% of our Earth is covered by water––it is so basic. Water is a necessary component to all bodily functions like regulating temperature, transporting nutrients, lubricating joints, eliminating waste, protecting organs, moisturizing skin, helping digestion–– it is so extra. 75% of the human brain is water and 75% of a living tree is water–– it is so mid. Thus is the predicament of water––we have so much of it that we forget that it is a precious resource, our most vital resource.

And here’s what we can remind ourselves today: Jesus’ thirst is not about how much water he needed in that moment. Don’t get me wrong, he was likely extremely parched and was vulnerably expressing his physical need. But Jesus could have miraculously found a way to get water into his system. Jesus’ thirst expresses more his humility and submission to the Father’s will than his dehydration. Jesus was fully committed to obedience and invites us to the same.

This I thirst statement also reminds us that the particulars of life matter to God. Christ’s journey to the cross captures details like this two-word declaration to remind us that God’s work of redemption was meticulous. We can rest in God’s goodness and know that he sees all the specifics of our lives––He’s planned them out thoughtfully. We can be faithful through the big and small aspects of our lives because he cares about them.

Every thirst matters. God might not quench all our thirsts in the manner and timing that we might desire, but he meets us at every thirst, and we have every opportunity to drink in his living water.

Take a few moments today to gaze at Baker’s works and reflect on Hamilton’s poem that captures the strength, boldness, and beauty of the Earth’s waters. Remind yourself that the God who created the oceans is with you. And take a few moments to listen to the song. It’s a simple antiphon that highlights the details in the vocalists’ presentation. Allow the vulnerable strength of their vocalization as it invites you into resilient obedience today.

Prayer:
God, we are thirsty for you, and we’re grateful that you not only care about our souls’ thirst, but are strong enough to provide for them. Help us to lean into the humility and submission that Christ demonstrated on his journey to the cross. Give us the courage and wisdom to submit to you in the ways you’re inviting us to today.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

Dr. Mike Ahn, M.Div.
Dean of Spiritual Development
Biola University