The River of Life

“We must begin thinking like a river if we are to leave a legacy of beauty and life for future generations.” ― David Brower

Genesis 2:10 says that “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters.” God was the source of the river which gave life to all of creation.

Revelation 22:1 reads, “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.  On each side of the river stood the tree of life bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.  And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.”  The Bible concludes with a picture of another river flowing from God, who is its source, down the middle of the community and which gives life and healing to all.

And in between the first book and the last book of the Bible there are numerous other references to rivers and water. In Psalm 46:4 we read of a river whose streams make glad the city of God.  In Isaiah 41:18 God speaks of making rivers to flow on barren heights and of turning deserts into pools of water.  In Ezekiel 47 we get a very beautiful and detailed description of a great and mighty river flowing from the Temple of God that contains swarms of fish and other living creatures and that provides a sanctuary for fruit trees of all kinds to grow -- fruit trees which provide a continual  source of fruit for food and of leaves for healing. The references to rivers and water is perhaps climaxed in the words of Jesus Christ when he says to the woman at the well, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” Living water is generally  understood to be running water because it is clear and clean and drinkable, while stagnant water is stale, dirty and impure. Clear, running water is a symbol of life --  life for our bodies and our souls.

Water has always fascinated and inspired me and I would love to be able to really explore in-depth the importance of rivers as a source of life -- life for our local ecosystems, health for our environment, and renewed life for us as stewards of God’s creation. Particularly important to me is understanding and even participating in the cycle of life that is found in rivers and streams. The Trinity Stream Team's work in Rush Creek these past several years has already taught me a lot about how the life cycle of a stream works.  I know that a healthy stream must have a good population of invertebrates. Invertebrates affect the nutrients of a stream by consuming and transforming various organic matter. They also are a food source for fish that inhabit the stream.  One thing the invertebrates are dependent upon is plant life in and around the stream. So a stream that is polluted and full of chemicals that kill or diminish plant life will not support a healthy invertebrate population and thus will also not be a good habitat for fish. This in turn means the stream will not be a good habitat for animals and other wildlife that are looking for fish to eat. 

I have already hinted at the negative role that man can play in the life cycle of a stream as a prime polluter; yet people can, of course, be part of the cycle in positive ways too.  But in order to do so, I believe they will have to spend some time in rivers observing the beauty of the life cycle and really understanding how it all works.  One of the best ways to do this, I think, is by fly fishing. Unfortunately, I cannot say that I speak of this from a whole lot of personal experience (something I hope to change in the near future), but from what I do know, fly fishing puts you right in the water with the fish and other river life and forces you to take to time to observe what is going on around you while you quietly wait for the fish to grab your fly.  And then when the fish finally does jump through the air and grab your fly, you realize that you yourself have become part of the life cycle of the river too, and it is a beautiful experience!

I believe spending time on rivers and seeing how life flourishes in the running water is something that would give me renewed life. In fact, I am thinking about how I might be able to spend several months exploring rivers as part of a pastoral sabbatical -- a sabbatical by which I, and also members of Trinity Church, can ourselves become better rivers of living water, for the benefit of all those we come in contact with in our cycle of life.