Most of us have little idea what it is like to go without water.

Water is absolutely necessary for life. Under normal conditions the human body may survive four or five days without it, but in extreme heat, illness, or exhaustion, dehydration can come quickly and death may follow within twenty-four hours.

So we can understand something of the suffering of the Israelites. Their journey through the desert and wilderness was harsh and exhausting. Without water they would soon have begun to die.

Water was not a luxury for them. It was a matter of life or death. The people feared they would perish in the desert, and so they cried out in distress.

The people complained against Moses, but Moses understood their suffering. He was a true shepherd of his people. Rather than responding in anger, he turned to God in prayer and interceded for them.

Then, at the command of God, Moses performed one of the great miracles of the Old Testament. He struck the rock, and water flowed forth. The thirst of the people was satisfied. This miracle was a powerful sign of God’s providential care.

St. Paul later reflected on this event and wrote: “They drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.” (1 Corinthians 10:4)

Ancient Jewish tradition even held that this rock accompanied the Israelites throughout their wandering and supplied them with water for the forty years in the desert.

Whether taken symbolically or traditionally, the message is clear: God provided for His people.

The rock is a symbol of Christ Himself. As Jesus tells the Samaritan woman in today’s Gospel: “Whoever drinks the water that I shall give will never thirst.” (John 4:14)

Christ gives us living water.

First, this living water already dwells within us. At Baptism the Holy Spirit was poured into our souls. We call this gift sanctifying grace, the divine life of God within us.

Second, the story teaches us the importance of trusting God. The Israelites complained in their distress. Yet the true solution to our trials is not complaint, but prayer. When we turn to God with trust, our loving Father pours out His grace upon us.

The Israelites thought they had been abandoned by God. But God had not abandoned them. And He does not abandon us.

This Lent, let us drink deeply of the living water already present within our souls. Let us draw closer to Christ in prayer, trusting that the Lord will sustain us in every trial, just as He provided for Moses and the Israelites in the desert.