(Image from nicoleseitz.com)Wade in the water.
Wade in the water, children.
Wade in the water.
God's gonna trouble the water.
Well, who are these children all dressed in red?
God's a-gonna trouble the water
Must be the children that Moses led
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Who's that young girl dressed in white
Wade in the Water
Must be the Children of Israelites
God's gonna trouble the Water.
Jordan's water is chilly and cold.
God's gonna trouble the water.
It chills the body, but not the soul.
God's gonna trouble the water.
If you get there before I do.
God's gonna trouble the water.
Tell all of my friends I'm coming too.
God's gonna trouble the water.
Water is so many things. It is a path to escape and a landmark to follow back home. It is a source of life through its consumption as well as a source of laughter and fun through rock-hopping and sprinkler time.
When was the last time we viewed water as something God "troubled"? What exactly is troubled water? The intentional images that flash through my head look like tidal waves and tsunamis, but that doesn't sound like the type of water the singers of this spiritual were wanting their children to be wading in.
I think the kind of trouble God is creating for these waters is the trouble that comes with radical movements or change. In my opinion, this is good trouble. The best kind of trouble there can be. Trouble that creates change through destruction.
I have personally witnessed this kind of water-made trouble. A couple of years ago when I was on a school trip to the US/Mexico border. We were walking along in the desert (with our water bottles close at hand) and we came to a part of the fence that was being rebuilt. We of course asked why and our guide pointed down the path where the strewn pieces of the old part of the wall were.
The path we had been walking on and the fence had been in the way of was a riverbed. During the rainy season, the river seems to come out of no where and become such a force that cement and wood and hundreds of hours of labor can just be washed away. It seems to me that God troubled that water.
Stand in the water. Play in the water. Drink the water. Share the water. Wade in the water. God's gonna trouble that water.
(Image from lindalesperance.com)
When was the last time we viewed water as something God "troubled"? What exactly is troubled water? The intentional images that flash through my head look like tidal waves and tsunamis, but that doesn't sound like the type of water the singers of this spiritual were wanting their children to be wading in.
I think the kind of trouble God is creating for these waters is the trouble that comes with radical movements or change. In my opinion, this is good trouble. The best kind of trouble there can be. Trouble that creates change through destruction.
I have personally witnessed this kind of water-made trouble. A couple of years ago when I was on a school trip to the US/Mexico border. We were walking along in the desert (with our water bottles close at hand) and we came to a part of the fence that was being rebuilt. We of course asked why and our guide pointed down the path where the strewn pieces of the old part of the wall were.
The path we had been walking on and the fence had been in the way of was a riverbed. During the rainy season, the river seems to come out of no where and become such a force that cement and wood and hundreds of hours of labor can just be washed away. It seems to me that God troubled that water.
Stand in the water. Play in the water. Drink the water. Share the water. Wade in the water. God's gonna trouble that water.
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Beth is graduating from Presbyterian College in May with a BS in Early Childhood Education and a BA in Christian Education. In August, she will be moving to Nashville, TN to work with the Young Adult Volunteer Program.
fantastic post!
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