Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” John 4:13-15
“Think of poverty. Even outward poverty, a hard and simple life, the dropping for love’s sake of the many things we feel we ‘must have’ is a great help in the way of the Spirit. Far more precious is that inward poverty of which is the sacrament; which frees us from possessions and possessiveness and does away with the clutch of ‘the I, the Me and the Mine’ upon our souls. We can all strive for this internal grace. This is an attitude of soul, and it is a very important part of the life of prayer. The Holy Spirit is called the Giver of gifts and the Father of the poor; but His cherishing action is only really felt by those who acknowledge their own deep poverty – who realize that we have literally nothing of our own, but are totally dependent on God and on that natural world in which God has placed us and which is the sacramental vehicle of His action. When we grasp this we are ready to receive His gifts. Some souls are so full of pious furniture and ornaments, that there is no room for Him. All the correct things have been crammed into a poor little villa, but none of the best quality. They need to pull down the curtains, get rid of the knick-knacks, and throw their premises open to the great simplicity of God.”
Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) in Lent with Evelyn Underhill, ed. by G.P. Mellick Belshaw (Harrisburg: Morehouse, 1990) 20.
Underhill is spot on. Inward poverty “frees us from possessions and possessiveness” that seeks to dominate our souls. How do we take hold of this? Through the Lenten practices of giving, praying, and fasting, we realize “we have literally nothing of our own” but what God has given us. We embrace that we “are totally dependent on God” and only then are we “ready to receive His gifts” for us and others.
Can a cup that is full of water receive living water so that it never thirsts again? Of course not! Inward poverty is about emptying that which crowds out God and His good gifts to make room for that which is best. It’s what Jesus invited the woman at the well to grasp for her sake and for blessing her village (cf. John 4:1-42). Is there anything that is crowding out God and His good gifts for you and others? Any “pious furniture and ornaments” that need to go?
Father in heaven, we pause in solitude and prayer today to acknowledge our total dependence on You. Show us the things in our lives that crowd out You and Your good gifts. Help us by your Holy Spirit to identify and remove them. Fill us to overflowing so that we are satisfied and eager to share. Like the woman at the well, may our joyful sharing in the villages where You have placed us, help others find life in You too. Make it so we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.