Sunday, March 23, 2025

Minute for Mission: World Water Day

Water is life, Indigenous water-protectors proclaim. Water is a blessing, gardeners understand. Water is powerful, farmers know — too much or too little can be dangerous for both crops and people. Water is precious, and it is needed in unpolluted and uncontaminated form, to be used in one of our essential sacraments in our faith tradition.

In baptism, we use water as we share a mark of being in community and bound to one another. We pledge our covenant to care for our siblings through this sign and seal of God’s grace. How could we celebrate this holy sacrament without all people having access to clean water?

Around the world and in our own country, having fresh water sources, “just enough” water, and access to potable water are inequitable. Some communities face floods while others face drought. Some communities are poisoned by lead pipes in systems long in disrepair, or by industrial and chemical pollutants from nearby industries. Still others around the world are in dire need of water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and bathing and yet find no nearby water sources or only sources that have been contaminated.

Without water, we cannot live. All creatures and systems depend on water, and we are grateful for the life it brings and nourishes. As Christians and Presbyterians, we are grateful to God for this gift that is a part of Baptism. Being fortified by the grace of God in baptism, let us commit to working for a world where everyone has access to clean water, and just enough.

Rev. Rebecca Barnes, Manager, Presbyterian Hunger Program, Interim Unified Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

  • Dori Hjalmarson, Mission co-worker serving in Honduras, World Mission, Interim Unified Agency 
  • Randy Hobson, Manager, Design & Multimedia, Communication, Interim Unified Agency 

Let us pray:

God, in the beginning of time, your wisdom danced over the waters of the earth. We give you thanks that your Spirit still blows through your Creation, as it did in the beginning of time. May your sacred presence continue to infuse the waters of the world and bring creativity, healing, and transformation to hurting places.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Mission Yearbook: Baltimore church champions eco-friendly initiatives for a thriving community and planet

Faith Presbyterian Church in Baltimore is revamping its parking lot into green spaces designed to improve the environment. This transformat...