BROKEN CISTERNS

"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of

living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold

water. (NIV)

My father is a farmer in Central Kentucky who deals with cattle year round. One of his primary concerns is making sure the cattle have a water source at all times. He values his stock and keeps an eye on them regularly. He walks the

fence rows checking for broken places where the cattle might escape. He makes sure the concrete water tanks are full and running smoothly, especially in the heat of the summer.

At one time Dad relied on the farm pond as a main water source for his cattle, but he had a major problem. There was a leak in the pond deep in the ground and it continually drained down too low! He hired someone to come to the

farm and figure out where the leak was, and what to do. They completely drained the pond, and put a liner in the ground. That fixed the problem, and now the pond stays full and overflowing ….to the joy of the farm dog, a black Labrador retriever named Buddy!

Statistics show that we are not keeping a close eye on our water source these days. Our Christian families are starving for life and are going dry. What’s happening out there? Let me tell you…

Below are just some of the increasingly grave realities that are infiltrating our homes and adding to the divorce dilemma in our country and churches:

*Gambling

*Pornography

*Infidelity

*Drugs/Alcohol abuse

*Spouse Abuse

How can this be? Surely not within our Christian homes, you say. Reality is, yes they are happening. Maybe not as often as in the secular realm, but it’s there.

I, personally, have been blessed with a wonderful, Spirit-filled husband of 26 years. We have had many difficulties in that time with various life situations, but the glue that keeps us together has been our combined effort of walking with

Christ. It’s a daily walk.

Some Christian couples don’t end up this way. Why? I could go into great depth about each one of these scenarios that lead to divorce in our families today. But I don’t need to. You know what they are.You might have experienced one, or more, or lived with someone who did.

We all seem to be attached in some shape or fashion to one of the above acts. Sad to say…but true. All we have to do is go into the work place or ride a school bus with our children and listen to the conversation content. It’s everywhere.

Youth of today are bombarded with all the above. They need guidance, but if our parents of today aren’t grounded in Truth, and led by the Spirit, where does that leave them? To struggle through a dense forest of sin and possibly end up

in some dark alley.

I’ve heard way too many stories of Christian families whose children wind up on drugs and alcohol in their teens. Peer pressure runs rampant. Sin runs rampant in our youth and in our schools! It takes a very strong family system to overcome these obstacles that fall before them. And a lot of prayer. If we as parents partake in any of the above sin traps, chances are, our children will too. They follow our lead, moms and dads.

I’d like to use the analogy I started out with. Let’s say all the above sins are “cracks in our cisterns”. When we participate in any of them, we are forsaking God and His ways. We’ve broken fellowship. Turned our backs on the

Living Water Himself and sought refreshment from other sources. When we “drink from the cup” long enough, we’ll realize the water is contaminated. Unclean. Makes us sick.

How do we as Christian parents avoid the sin traps? How do we keep our Living Water source flowing smooth and clean? How do we repair the broken cisterns?

Realize we all have a sinful nature. Romans 7:17-19 “As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do good, but I cannot carry it out.” (NIV)

Repent of your sin and turn away from it. You are freed of your sin, and new in Christ! Colossians 2:6-13 “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ.”

Ask God for guidance through the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:5-6 “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” (NIV)

See, that’s the problem. Our eyes aren’t focused on Jesus…enough. Satan knows our leaky cisterns. He knows where the fault lines are. The cracks, the weak spots. He will bash and bang them until we falter…if we’re not careful.

Let Jesus be the liner that keeps you full and overflowing with Him! When you start feeling that pull to do any of these family destroying activities, pray. Pray a lot. Seek Christian counsel, be it a pastor or trained therapist. Establish an

accountability partner. Many times this is the “missing link” in overcoming any of these sin traps! There is strength in numbers.

Hebrews 4:13
”Nothing God created is hidden from him. His eyes see everything. He will hold us accountable for everything we do.” (NIV)

Ecclesiastes 4:12 “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”(NIV)

Your family needs you, and so does Christ! He has a purpose and a plan for your life, and I can guarantee it isn’t living in a broken cistern.