Refresh-MINT
A few of my favorite ways to cool down in the heat of summer are sipping an ice-cold glass of mint tea by the pool, jumping in the ocean after basking in the sun or floating on a tube in the lake. The common thread? Water. Without water, the heat would get to me. I get dehydrated very easily and begin to feel sick, tired, and parched. This is much like how my flowers look after I forget to water them; sad and droopy.
This past year I felt more like my droopy flowers or a shrub in the desert than a tree planted by the living water (Jeremiah 17:6-8). As a new working mom to a preemie/NICU baby, the sleep deprivation, around the clock feedings, diapers, childcare, sickness, appointments, googling all the things, constant change, schedule, mental load of motherhood, etc. emptied my cup and left me feeling spiritually dry.
But God! He sustained, strengthened, carried and provided a village to support me. Isaiah 58:11 states "The Lord will guide you always, he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." How satisfying it is indeed when we drink a refreshing beverage after being in the scorching heat of the sun! Jesus promises us in John 4:14 "whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst." Only living water, the Holy Spirit, can satisfy. Christ alone sustained me and is refilling my cup.
Psalm 23:2; 5 “He leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul; my cup overflows!” I now have the great privilege and joy of encouraging and praying for other new moms because of Christ flowing through me.
REFLECT: Where have you seen God guiding you, satisfying your needs, strengthening you and restoring your soul?
John 7:37-38 “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
Water is an essential nutrient for life and growth. Believe it or not, our bodies can survive without food for about three weeks but cannot live for more than three days without water. Just as our physical bodies need water to survive, so do our souls! Spiritual food and water. In John 6:35 Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." In John 6 and 7, Jesus invites us by saying “come” and follows that invitation with an action “drink”, “believe”, and “eat” (Isaiah 55). Someone can cook up a table full of exquisite, delicious food alongside the purest water, but you have to actually EAT and DRINK the meal in order to be nourished by it. Otherwise, the food and water would just sit and begin to spoil. Most of us come to the table several times a day to eat three meals plus snacks and drink water all day long. In the same way, let us nourish our souls!
REFLECT: What if we were to seek God with the same intention and frequency that you do food/drink (essentials!)?
Isaiah 55:1-2 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?”
Sometimes we try to quench our spiritual thirst with salt water instead of the spring of living water. Jeremiah 2:13 "They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.” In my first year of motherhood, I often tried to muscle my way through by my own strength, look to my husband to rescue me, seek advice from other moms, or scroll social media for the next tip on how to get my child to sleep through the night. While not all of these are bad things, they are not God. When we place someone or something above God (even good things), that becomes an idol of our worship - worshiping the created thing instead of the creator of all things. Without the creator of all things, the spring of living water, it is impossible to grow, bloom, bear fruit or remain rooted through the storms.
REFLECT: What cistern are you drinking from that is coming up dry/empty/contaminated?
Isaiah 1:30 “You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water.”
Ezekiel 47:9 & 12 “...so where the river flows everything will live... Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
Jeremiah 17:7-8 “But blessed is the man who trust in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”
Over the years, in other seasons where my cup was running low, I walked through the park, along the peaceful stream and witnessed a deer crossing through on multiple occasions. God in His infinite mercy and gentleness used that visual to remind me of Psalm 42:1-2 “As the deer pants for water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirst for God, the living God.” Psalm 23:1-3 “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want, He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me besides quiet waters, he restores my soul.”
REFLECT: Are you spiritually thirsty? Is your cup running dry? Come to the spring of living water and drink deeply.
Also, here is my mint tea recipe if you’d like to try it!
Mint tea Recipe:
Boil 2-4 cups of water in a small saucepan
Remove pan from the stovetop
Add 6 black tea bags and 10-20 mint leaves to the hot water
Steep tea bags for 5 minutes
Remove tea bags and discard; leave mint leaves in for up to 24 hours
Add ¼ cup sugar & stir until dissolved
Transfer mixture to a pitcher
Add water up to 1 gallon
Refrigerate & enjoy!
ABOUT OUR BLOGGER
Danielle Kuhn is a Delaware native who enjoys all the small-town aspects of living in the heart of Kennett Square with her husband Brian and their daughter Clara.
Meaningful conversations and exploring the beauty of nature by foot fill her soul. She is passionate about connecting and encouraging other women in their faith.
One of her simplest joys in life is sipping a warm cup of tea, that has undoubtedly been reheated at least once in the microwave!
Willowdale Women's Beach Bunco
July 26, 7 - 8:30 pm, Jennersville Campus
Women of all ages (high school on up) are invited to join us for a Beach Bunco night in the main lobby. Dress in your favorite boardwalk attire and plan for some yummy boardwalk snacks, including FREE ice cream from the Woodside Creamery truck! Bunco is a very simple and social game that doesn't require skill or experience and is great for first-timers! Come by yourself or bring a friend. It’s a wonderful summer for building community at Willowdale!
Deadline to Register is Friday, July 21.