Come, freely
“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”Revelation 22:17
Reflection
We have reached devotional number 250, and there is no more fitting invitation to mark the road already traveled than this — one of the last invitations in the whole Bible. On the final pages of Scripture, after all the promises, all the stories, all the revelations about God, everything boils down to one simple word full of love: "COME". God does not end His Word with a threat or a complicated demand, but with an open invitation: come. That is who He is — from the first to the last chapter, a God who invites, who calls, who opens His arms.
Notice who makes the invitation: "the Spirit and the bride say, Come". The Holy Spirit invites, and "the bride" (the church, the people of God) too. And then the invitation multiplies: "let him that HEARETH say, Come". That is, each person who hears the invitation becomes also one who invites. It is a call that spreads from heart to heart. If you have already answered that "come" at some point of your journey, now you are also among those who say "come" to others. The invitation received becomes an invitation offered.
Note to whom the invitation is directed: "let him that is ATHIRST come; whosoever WILL, let him take". The only qualification required is to be thirsty and to will. It is not necessary to be worthy, not necessary to have merits, not necessary to qualify in any way — you only need to thirst for what only God gives and to be willing to receive. And what does one receive? "The water of life", and "FREELY". What is most precious — the life that comes from God, the eternal satisfaction of the soul — is offered free of charge, without cost, without price. What no money could buy, God gives freely to whoever thirsts and comes.
If you have walked to this point — 250 days of encounters with God, 250 mornings or nights when you chose to stop before Him — perhaps you have already drunk many times of that water of life along the way. And the invitation remains the same, every day: "come". Come drink again today. Come when you are thirsty, come when you are weary, come when you have failed, come when you are glad. The water of life does not run out, and the invitation never expires. And now, having received, be also one who says "come" to others — who invites the thirsty around you to know the fountain you have found. May these 250 days have left in you not merely knowledge about God, but a greater thirst for Him — and the joy of inviting others to come too. The fountain is open. Freely. Forever. Come.
Prayer
Lord, thank You that, from the first to the last chapter of Your Word, You are a God who invites: "Come". On this milestone of 250 days of walking with You, I come again to the fountain — with my thirst, without merits, to drink freely of the water of life. Increase in me the thirst for You, and make me one who also says "come" to the thirsty around me. Your fountain is open, and I drink from it with gratitude. Amen.
Put it into practice
Celebrate the 250 days: give thanks to God for the journey and "come drink" again today, with your current thirst. Then, be one who says "come": invite a thirsty person around you to know the fountain you have found — share the journey, point them to the app, tell them what God has done in you.
To reflect on
Looking at the 250 days of walking, has your thirst for God grown — and to whom, around you, could you say "come" today?
Bible text: King James Version (public domain).