A Blue Moon

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. John 7:37-39

We traveled home last night by the light of a full moon. This moon, the second full moon of the month is often referred to as a blue moon. In church tradition, calculating the dates for Lent and Easter, the clergy were expected to identify the Lent Moon. It is thought that historically when the moon's timing was too early, they named an earlier moon as a "betrayer moon" (belewe moon), thus the Lent moon came at its expected time. Folklore gave each moon a name according to its time of year. A moon that came too early had no folk name, and was called a blue moon, retaining the correct seasonal timings for future moons. Whatever the name and cause, a blue moon is a fairly rare event. It makes us ponder the nature of things. Arriving home, watching the water in the canal reflect the moon, I couldn't help but wonder what the sky and sea were saying.

Jesus proclaims a very bold statement at the end of a huge religious festival. Drawing people away from the standard and expected rituals and rules, he declares himself the one from whose heart will flow streams of living water. He draws back on the ancient traditions of faith and places himself smack dab in the present and future of the faith. Jesus pulls from the ancient scripture and makes it relevant for his people and their time, and ours. We are people who need to be watered and fed, and in certain times, especially when the seasons are changing, when our lives are in turmoil, we ache for water and food, for the basics of our existence. We ache for comfort and sustenance, and God promises that we are being fed and watered from an unlimited source, no ,matter our strains and circumstances.

Today, I ask God to help me go to the source for all of my needs. It is very human to complain about the things we lack, but may we be moved beyond our lack, to seek God in our emptiness. May our prayers be constant and expectant, like breathing out and in, reaching to God in our every need, seeking the living water from the source of all life.