Sometimes, Holy Spirit ‘falls’ on believers, like “showers of blessing to refresh” our souls (Acts 3:19-20 MSG). Or He falls like rain in response to true faith – like that of Cornelius and his household as Peter shared the gospel (Acts 10:44 NLT). In this way, Holy Spirit washes, renews, and restores, bringing new life in Christ (Titus 3:5).
Other times, Holy Spirit ‘pours’ out on God’s people – less gently, more saturating – like a good drenching from a summer downpour. It’s what Joel foretold and what Peter pointed to on the day of Pentecost as Jesus’ disciples poured out onto the streets of Jerusalem, soaked in the Spirit and speaking about their Savior with passion and fervor and in every language imaginable.
“I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Joel 2:28-29 and Acts 2:17-18
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.”
Then there are times Holy Spirit ‘floods’ believers – but not with destructive force. Rather, the Spirit floods our inner beings with His holy grace, filling us to overflowing with faith and love for Jesus (1 Timothy 1:14 TPT).
Images of Holy Spirit as water fill Scripture from beginning to end. But perhaps the most consistent picture of God the Spirit is that of a river of living water, bringing life everywhere He ‘flows’.
Act One – Eden’s River
The Creation story moves us so quickly through the idea that “the earth was formless and empty” that it’s easy to read right over the reality of what was before Holy Spirit hovered over the waters (Genesis 1:2 NLT). Void (ESV). Desolate emptiness (NASB). A soup of nothingness (MSG). All of which convey chaos. Nothing that exists now was present then.
In Hebrew, the phrase describing “formless and empty” helps us understand the state of pre-creation as “unordered and uninhabited.”1 It had no purpose, no order. Truly, only chaos.
And to emphasize such orderlessness, the Hebrew author of Genesis speaks of how “darkness covered the deep waters” in an attempt to describe the indescribable (v.2).1 It was a watery abyss (MSG). A “primeval ocean that covered the unformed earth” (AMP). Waters that God’s Spirit moves over and not only brings about order and purpose but life.2
We watch as the wild waste of waters are given order and purpose on Day Two. From there, we read about each stage of Creation until we land in a garden in the east, in Eden. And we find that the source of life in this flourishing garden is a river (Genesis 2:10). A river that flows not only in Eden but from Eden and into the world, splitting into four large rivers that bring life and livelihood to Adam and Eve’s descendents.
“From the Bible’s first scene, we gather that the Holy Spirit doesn’t just get rid of disorder. The Spirit makes the very place of darkness and fear an oasis teeming with full, free life.”
Tyler Staton 2
Act Two – Ezekiel’s River
The river of life flows onward – this time in a vision God gives to the prophet Ezekiel. During the Babylonian exile, God sweeps Ezekiel into a vision of Jerusalem and its restored Temple.
Led by an angelic being, Ezekiel observes a stream flowing out from under the Temple (Ezekiel 47:1). Following the flowing water eastward, our prophet enters the water, noting the way it gets deeper and deeper until it’s over his head – and eventually empties into the Dead Sea (vv.3-8). Upon their return to the Temple, Ezekiel is surprised to find fruit-bearing trees already growing along both sides of the riverbank (vv.7). Twice in verse nine, we are told that everywhere the river flows everything lives. Fish. Swarms of living creatures. And trees that never die, that bear fruit year round and yield leaves with healing properties (v.12).
A river flowing eastward, the same direction Adam and Eve walked when forced to leave Eden, reminds us of humanity’s fallen condition and the way our constant grasping for control always results in chaos.2 This river of life is a picture of God’s promise for the future. He grants us a peek into the way Holy Spirit will be poured out into every place of darkness and chaos, fear and hopelessness, bringing with Him order and life.2
Act Three – Jesus’ River
Centuries later, a ‘spring of living water’ comes up in a conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well (John 4:10-13). To this woman, a known ‘sinner’ and outcast, Jesus extends an invitation to drink of the living water He offers, “a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (v.14). A water of renewal that bubbles up in believers like a spring, bringing not just life, but life eternal.
This woman says yes to Jesus, and the life-giving water’s effect is obvious immediately. Her faith flows freely as she runs back to the village to tell everyone about the man who told her everything about her life (v.29).
This set-apart conversation sets the stage for an important public announcement. At the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus celebrated with the entire nation of Israel in a highly symbolic ceremony where priests poured large containers of water from the altar, down the Temple steps – “creating a stream flowing out from the temple toward the east.”2 A reenactment of Ezekiel’s vision, this outpouring became an invitation for all Jews to remember God’s promise for a river of living water.2
In this climactic moment of the festival, Jesus stands up, once again, before the crowd to issue His own invitation:
“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
John 7:37-38
Jesus speaks into the context, the history, the celebrated memory with words His audience would resonate with. It’s like He’s telling them, “What you’re waiting on in the Temple, you can find in me.”2 Jesus longs for His people to awaken to the truth of who He is – the One they’ve believed for and waited on for thousands of years.
The truth is everything the river illustrates in Ezekiel’s vision, Jesus becomes.2 Everywhere the river flows, everything will live. Like feeding thousands and healing bodies. Or delivering souls. Like raising the dead. Or pouring out His own life so that we can have eternal life.
Act Four – Holy Spirit’s River
John makes sure to explain what, exactly, Jesus means by “rivers of living water” – Holy Spirit (7:39)!
The Spirit who ushered in order and life at Creation has been doing this work of renewal and restoration ever since. And once Jesus ascended to the Father, Holy Spirit flowed down from heaven to fill every believer of all time.
So now, we are the rivers of living water.
With Holy Spirit in us, we are the rivers of healing and life for the world.
We, who are tiny temples of God, have living water flowing through us, into the world.2
Are you picturing it? With Holy Spirit in you, you are that water flowing from God’s presence, out into the world. You and I and every believer are the temple from which waters of life flow. Every single thing the river was in Ezekiel’s vision, the Church is meant to be in the world!2
“The river of living water has been poured out. Ezekiel’s vision has come to life in our midst. …The river of living water is now streaming forth from the lives of all who come to drink, just as Jesus promised.”2
Tyler Staton
Act Five – Revelation’s River
We know that we live in the in-between. Jesus has already come, so we live in the ‘now’ of the kingdom He ushered in – though it’s not yet complete. And we live in the ‘not yet’ of waiting for the kingdom to come in its fullness, for Jesus to return and finally make everything right.
We still live with hope, waiting for a perfect future with our perfect Savior.
And in His goodness our Father in heaven has given us pictures of His promises to come – to keep our hope in Him alive in our waiting, in the brokenness of our ‘not yet’. Pictures from a heavenly vision of an angel showing John “a river with the water of life” (Revelation 22:1). A river “flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” right down the main street of New Jerusalem (v.2 NLT). And on each side of this river are trees that bear “twelve crops of fruit” every year, one each month (v.2). Trees whose leaves will be “used for medicine to heal the nations” (v.2).
Friends, this is the same river that has flowed from the beginning – always from death to life. Always flowing from God to His people. It’s the river of life that flows forever.
Right now, in this small little blip of history that we’ve been born into, we have been invited into the river of living water – and it is for our healing, for our holy lives. Yet Jesus didn’t say this river of life would stay within us. In fact, that would be no river at all. Water that doesn’t flow – that’s the Dead Sea. Stagnant. Lifeless. Rather, Jesus says, “rivers of living water will flow from them” (John 7:38) – because this is life-filled, life-giving water that moves. That flows. That carries with it order and healing and life. And all of this happens because of Holy Spirit, the One who always flows in us and from us.
Today’s prayer flows right out of the lyrics from a modern worship song called “Roll On.”3 It’s lyrics are pulled straight from the Scriptures we’ve been soaking in today, s0 let’s give space for these words to do a work of reminding and renewal in us. God’s promises remain true today. All our hope in Him is good and right and true. Let us pray:
There is a throne found up above, and out of it flows a heavenly flood
Shining like crystal, brilliant and bright, the water of life
There is a man, who hung on a cross, beaten and bruised, broken for us
Healing and mercy flow from His side, the water of life
There is a world crying for help and people have tried everything else
But there’s only one thing that satisfies, the water of life
The sick made well, the bound go free
The dead rise up, and blind eyes see
Everywhere it flows there’s life, everywhere it flows there’s life
Addiction breaks, depression leaves
Your Kingdom comes, the people sing
Everywhere it flows there’s life, everywhere it flows there’s life
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
[Please remember that throughout this series, we want to move through information gathering to Holy Spirit experiencing. As such, I will be adding an ‘experience’ of Holy Spirit each week in our “Rhythms” section below. I hope you’ll jump down there to see how you might stretch yourself in the way of experiencing more of the Spirit in your life. You can trust I’m doing the same!!]
Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.
- 1 – Bible Project’s video on Genesis 1
- 2 – Tyler Staton’s book, The Familiar Stranger,^ continues to be impactful on this journey of knowing and experiencing Holy Spirit. Making my way through it a second time is blessing me more than I could’ve imagined. (As of this writing, the hardback book is on sale, making it less expensive than any other format).
- 3 – The worship song, “Roll On” by The Belonging Co, was new to me before this series, and it has quickly risen to be one of my favorites. In fact, I’ve quietly dubbed in my ‘summer jam’ not only because it gets me moving but because it moves me right into the presence of God. You’ll also find it on our our Holy Spirit Playlist on Spotify.
- 4 — Below in the ‘experience’ section, I quote Dan Wilt who has written a book called All the Things and who is currently leading any and all who are following along on Seedbed’s Wake Up Call through its pages. Y’all this book and Dan himself are in the river of life with Holy Spirit. It couldn’t have been more perfectly timed for my own life, and I heartily recommend it for anyone interested in living out all the things that Jesus did and said. So. So. Good. The quote came from this specific episode on June 20, 2026. You can watch on YouTube. Listen on Spotify — just search Wake Up Call. Or you can go to Seedbed directly and sign up to get the daily Wake Up Call email.
- If you’re not familiar with Tyler Staton, the pastor who wrote The Familiar Stranger, you can hear him on various podcasts as he shares his story and growth as a believer. Most recently, he was a guest on Annie F. Downs’ podcast, That Sounds Fun. It’s a great interview and conversation!
- Many of you have found me on Substack. Thank you so much! And, if you’d like to listen to (rather than read) these weekly posts, you can do so on Substack. It’s easy to see and use the audio bar across the top of each post. While you’re on Substack, check out the ministry I’m blessed to be part of, the Devoted Collective.
- My monthly newsletter, The Abiding Life, goes to email inboxes the first week of each month to those who have subscribed on my website. I also post them on Substack. My most recent edition can be found there, and you can subscribe for future newsletters on Substack, here.
Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is one way to aid us in our desire to become more Christlike.
- The rhythm we’ll employ for our summer Holy Spirit series falls in the category of a weekly experience. This week we will lean into experiencing Holy Spirit in worshipful songs. I recently heard pastor and author Dan Wilt of Seedbed describe such songs as a place we go. “They’re a place we go to meet with God.”4 He went on to say that we can ‘enter’ a song, and that brought to mind the way Ezekiel entered the waters of the river of life. He didn’t just observe it. He got in it, eventually swimming in its depths (Ezekiel 47:5), washed by its waters, led by the Spirit to see and experience God’s life-giving goodness.
Our challenge this week is to find a song (or songs) that move us to the point that the song becomes a place that we actually go, a place of meeting with Jesus. Dan encourages us to get alone in a place where we can be less self-aware and more Jesus-aware, where we can linger with Him and worship Him as a response to His beauty and presence and love.4
If you need some song suggestion, I’ll point you to our Holy Spirit playlist, and I’ll sort them by style of song in case that makes a difference. 😉- Hymns — “Spirit of the Living God” by Audrey Assad; “Holy Spirit, Light Divine” by Faithchild Psalms
- Spiritual Songs — “Breathe” by Worship Circle and Melodie Malone; “Living Water” by Ellie Holcomb
- Modern Worship — “Spirit Move” by Bethel and kalley; “Great Are You, Lord” by one sonic society
- We’re all called to share the truth about who Jesus is. One way you can do that is by sharing this site and telling others your own stories of faith experiences. May we use our whole selves to tell others about our holy God!!
Featured Photo is of a “Tiffany Holy Spirit Stain Glass Art Hanging”
“All the Bits and Pieces” Photo by Zrng N Gharib on Unsplash.
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