Water…

“Water, water, everywhere, but seldom a drop we drink” ~Me

Water, Dihydrogen Monoxide, is the number one resource required for human life. Sixty per cent of the human body is composed of water.  This makes it very important that we drink enough water to replace what we lose during the day. This amount varies greatly depending on your age, gender, overall health, level of physical activity, geographic location, and numerous other potential factors. The Institute of Medicine sets the recommended water intake for males to be around 125 ounces (3.7 liters) daily. That’s pretty darn close to a full gallon. Daily. From my own experience, it is very easy to not take in enough water while simply being unaware of it. I went through a period of time where for about three weeks I hardly drank anything. A bowl of cereal, the occasional bottle of water for lunch at school, and whatever I felt like having for dinner, and that was it. Probably less than 40 ounces overall. Less than one third the recommended level for my demographic. My body quickly began to show the negative effects. Lack of energy, headaches, stiffness, and unreasonable soreness were all my symptoms. I was getting to the point of severe dehydration. Somewhere along the line, I realized that I had hardly drunk any water for a lengthy period of time. I postulated that to my apparent inability to function, and took steps to hydrate myself. The result was almost immediate. The very next day, my stiffness and soreness all but disappeared and headaches were minimized. I started bringing water to school. Not a little water, mind you: lots of water. Thirty-four ounces initially. But after some research, I realized just how much water was proper to drink every day. My guesstimate had been about half of that. After having tried to drink about a gallon of water daily for the past couple weeks, I have to tell you, it is hard. You have to have the presence of mind to get another bottle, refill that glass, pace yourself so you won’t feel nature’s urgent call during the middle of a big exam. It’s revolutionized the way I’ve been thinking about my life, really. I need to make accommodations where I hadn’t had to before, had to eat less salty foods, drink less soda, which only serves to dehydrate you. What does this have to do with anything? Well, like it or not, humans can’t live without water. I just want to give a shout out to Jesus Christ, who created the water that sustains us. I also want to share my story so that perhaps others won’t take for granted just how precious water is, especially clean, purified water like modern countries have access to. So, thank you, Lord Jesus, for your gift of water, and also for your gift of Living Water, that we may never thirst again.

Links:

Living Water: John 4:7-26

Institute of Medicine