The dry grass around our house crackles under my feet when I walk across the lawn. The Chrysanthemums in our flowerbed have wilted and are dying for lack of water. The creek near our neighborhood that was once too wide to hurdle was reduced to a narrow trickle of water in late summer and has recently dried up altogether.

To be facing a water shortage is unsettling, if not downright frightening. Statistics show that the average American is accustomed to using about 183 gallons of water each day. Those of us who take showers will use approximately 5 to 10 gallons of water a minute.

The Bible has much to say about water. Jesus is referred to as “the water of life.” One of the central features of heaven is described in Revelation 22:1 where the Apostle John writes: “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb.”

In contrast to the refreshing “water of life” in heaven there is a noticeable absence of water in hell. From his unbearable life of torment in hell the rich man in Luke 16 asked father Abraham to have mercy on him, saying, “send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame.”

Water is a precious commodity, and we take it all too much for granted. We expect our faucets to dispense water at all times for all our needs and all our desires.

It takes water to prepare and cook our food. It takes water to wash our clothes. It takes water to wash our dishes, glasses, and utensils. It takes water to brush our teeth. It takes water to clean our bodies and wash our hair. It takes water to flush our toilets. It takes water to sustain us physically. It takes water to clean our homes and automobiles.

Is it possible that the southeastern part of our nation could become another “Dust Bowl” like the devastating Dust Bowl in the American Southwest during the 1930s, which helped set off the Great Depression?

News reports have indicated that there is less than 60 days of stored water left in Lake Lanier, Atlanta’s primary water source. With a dry winter in the forecast Governor Perdue has stated that more water restrictions may be on the way.

The National Weather Service reports an average rainfall of more than 60 inches for Georgia, with measurable amounts of rain typically recorded on around 140 days each year. However, much of the state has received considerably less precipitation this year than normal and the days of rainfall have been few and far between. Consequently, the earth is parched and most rivers are experiencing a hydrologic drought.

Drought is the most obstinate and pernicious of the dramatic events that nature conjures up. It can last longer and extend across larger areas than hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes.

Across the state Baptists are beginning to examine what the Bible has to say about drought and its connection to human behavior. The Bible shows that God can and does control the climate of nations according to His will. When he chooses to exercise his prerogative to send a drought it is often because of sin.

In recent years God has allowed the terrorist attacks of 9/11/01 and the devastation of Katrina, among other things, to get our attention. Unfortunately, if God got our attention at all, it soon evaporated and we made little or no substantive changes in our lifestyle. In fact, there are times when God acts justly to get our attention, but instead of responding appropriately when God is just we think He is unjust.

An appropriate response to God acting justly in view of the present situation would be to engage in a personal introspection to see if our transgressions have provoked God’s wrath and thus inspired Him to send the drought.

In Lev. 26:3-5 God gave a promise to ancient Israel that could very well apply to us as well: “If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them, Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.”

In contradistinction to the preceding positive promise we have these words in verses 14-20 of the same chapter: “But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments; And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant: I also will do this unto you; I will appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart; and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.

“And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you. And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins. And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass: And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.”

The apostle Paul wrote that the historical things that happened to ancient Israel are there for our learning (I Cor. 10:11). Therefore, let’s not waste the drought. Clearly there is a connection between obedience to God’s commandments and the blessings that accompany that obedience.

First, let us make sure that we are living in obedience to God’s commands. Second, let us fervently pray for rain. Third, let us believe God for an answer to our prayers. Fourth, let us become good stewards of our natural and material resources. Fifth, this Thanksgiving season and all the year through let us be grateful for every drop of water and all God’s blessings.