Agua Viva

Saturday we participated in an activity we call Agua Viva, or Living Water, where we hand out small cups of pure water to the public... on sidewalks, in collectivos (buses), all over the street. Each cup has the John 4:13-14 and contact information for the church, and the 40/40 missionaries.

13 Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.
14 But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

Sunday turned out to be by far the coolest day we've had, with temperatures only reaching 72. We worked hard to greet people, offer them "Auga Pura, gratis," (free, pure water) and to tell them "Cristo te ama (Christ loves you). We ran into traffic every red light (after the first 2-5 vehicles had already run the light) and hopped onto collectivos offering water to drivers and passengers alike. Many rolled their windows up when they saw us. Some nodded, "Gracias," but made no move to reach out the window to accept the offer of free water.

Most Paraguayans carry around thermoses of cold tea called tereré, that they pour into a small cup with a straw. They shares these with friends and family. Some accepted the water even though they had already provided themselves plenty to drink. Others were not at all interested.


At one point Mike Wheatley, one of the 40/40s, noticed a boy on a bicycle sorting through the trash across the road (not on our red light side). Mike took the first opportunity to run across the road and give him water. Matthew 10:42 immediately ran through my head.

42 And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded.”

Throughout the experience, I tried to balance the fun and competition of handing out water (I gave out SEVEN cups that red light!) with the real reason we were doing it. As we worked, the 40/40s began getting a few texts from people who took the water and were grateful.  We celebrated the opportunity to become more connected and share the source of real Life.

Later that day and the next, I began to process the activity with different eyes. Living Water that Christ offers is the gift that people often pass on. They try to carry on with our own strength, carrying our own tereré, refilling where they can. They nod politely and move on quickly. Some even block us out before we have the chance to share. All are missing out on the relationship in which they were created to thrive. We have to draw close to people and show them what they are missing. We need to share our living water every day, in every opportunity. Just like Jesus did at the well, we have to show how insufficient their own thermoses are.


And we can only do this if we are living in Agua Vida.


Lord, help us live in daily acceptance of your Living Water and help us share with everyone around us.