Muddied Water

I will send down showers in season….

Ezekiel 34:26b

During a Girl Scout camp out, we took turns filling our canteens, the earlier version of water bottles, with cool spring water bubbling from the ground. We carefully avoided muddying the water for the next girl’s canteen filling.

God’s message through the prophet Ezekiel for the calloused Israelite leaders reminded me of my Girl Scout experience. It also reminded me of a common narcissistic behavior. Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet (Ez. 34:18b-19).

Just as the Israelite leaders failed to feel empathy for those they led, my narcissist spouse failed to care about the muddied emotional water the children and I often drank—the aftermath of his narcissistic entitlement, his need for validation, and his search for narcissistic supply.

In addition to the leader’s reprimand, God also speaks words of comfort through Ezekiel for the Israelites. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessings (Ezekiel 34:26b). Refreshingly, those same showers of blessings have also begun to rain down on my life—once I stopped drinking the muddied water.  

Father, Your care and provision remain constant in my life. I thank You for blessing me with clarity for what I need to know and to see about my life. Thank You for never ceasing to protect, guide, and bless me. May You be glorified. In the name of Your Son, the Living Water, I pray, amen.

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