Water of life.

medical studies have a way of messing with my mind. Long-held beliefs crumble under the relentless pounding of freshly proven facts. Such was the case when I read a recent report out of Loma Linda University, a Seventh-day Adventist medical school in southern California. It had to do with water.

It's common knowledge that not drinking enough water has been linked to such ailments as constipation, kidney stones, overeating, and dry eyes, mouth, and skin. This new study, published in the America, Journal of Epidemiology (Vol. 155, No. 9) showed that drinking high amounts of plain water is as important as exercise, diet, or not smoking in preventing coronary heart disease.

While that bit of information was surprising enough, what caught my eye was the word "plain" next to water. According to the study, neither total fluid intake, nor intake of other fluids combined showed this reduced risk. Coffee, soda, milk, and caffeinated sodas showed no significant heart benefits. In fact, these types of fluids draw water from the blood because they can't be digested until their concentration is reduced to be similar to that of blood. Plain water, however, is absorbed immediately and quickly hydrates the system, thinning the blood and thus reducing the risk of clots that can lead to heart attack.

The study concluded with these words: Because drinking more plain water is a simple lifestyle change that anybody can do, this practice has the potential of saving tens of thousands of lives each year with minimal cost.

After reading the report, a dark thought crossed my mind. How often do I dilute my Heavenly Father? How often do I accept the God of my church or the God of my favorite sermon tape or the God of the latest best seller at the Christian bookstore as my Savior? How often do I add a little extra ingredient to my relationship with Him that actually does nothing to enhance His power in my life? All that does is make God "taste" better in my mind or makes Him "blend" more unobtrusively with my appetite for sin.

I determined right then and there to rebuild my relationship with the "plain" God I find when I close my eyes in prayer or walk in the shaded solitude of the woods behind my house. Say, if enough of you will join me, we'll create our own study that will end with these words: Because worshiping the "plain" God is a simple lifestyle change that anybody can do, figs practice has the potential of saving tens of thousands of souls each year with minimal cost.

Let's begin today.

Charles Mills

EDITOR