Fortune magazine recently defined water as the oil of the 21st century, signaling a new assault on our freedoms. Nestle CEO Peter Brabeck claims water is not a human right but should be managed by business people, aiming to control, privatize, and delegate it to sustain the planet. This raises concerns about monitoring and limiting household water use, with laws already in place in the United States requiring permits for wells and rainwater collection, punishable by fines or imprisonment. International controls could one day force cities to ration water, allowing corporate dictators to prioritize water for corporate farms over others. The privatization of water, transferring control from public to private sectors, is increasingly proposed by corporate executives and government officials worldwide. This process often leads to rate increases, compromised water quality, and a focus on profits over public interest, as companies prioritize shareholders over consumers. Privatization fosters corruption through secret deals, reduces local control, increases costs for consumers, leads to job losses, and is difficult to reverse due to international trade protections. It can also leave the poor without access to clean water, especially in developing nations where IMF and World Bank schemes exacerbate the issue, and opens the door to unsustainable bulk water exports. Water is a basic human need, yet private companies treat it as a marketable commodity, under no obligation to provide it as a right. If water rights are handed to entities focused on maximizing profits rather than serving the public good, millions could lose access. Market forces, argued by multinational corporations to bring efficiency, fail to prioritize people over profits without wise public oversight.

Water is the symbol of God's Holy Spirit, the living water He promises freely to all humanity, and the Last Great Day highlights it. At the Temple water ceremony on that day, the priests poured a golden pitcher of water on the altar while the people sang, "With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation." Jesus stood and cried, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink," promising rivers of living water, far beyond that paltry pitcher. John explains that this water is the Holy Spirit, given to those who believe, repent, and are baptized. Until now it has only been a trickle. To the Samaritan woman Jesus contrasted Jacob's well, a seep well that is exhausted and leaves one thirsty again, with the flowing, inexhaustible spring He gives, which satisfies fully and leads to eternal life. Ezekiel 47 pictures a river flowing from the Temple, growing from ankle-deep to unswimmable, healing the Dead Sea and producing trees and fish wherever it goes, just as the Spirit brings the dead to life, healing, and growth. Habakkuk 2:14 shows the earth filling with God's knowledge as waters cover the sea. The Great White Throne Judgment fulfills the Last Great Day. The billions raised then receive another lifetime with the missing dimension, God's Spirit, poured out freely and abundantly. The water is active energy that moves believers to act like Christ. Isaiah 55:1-3, Revelation 21:6 and 22:17, and Psalm 36 all invite everyone who thirsts to drink freely.

This earth is experiencing a physical drought of water, paralleling the monetary drought affecting the wealthy during the financial crisis. Both the scarcity of water and riches stem from moral and ethical bankruptcy. If humanity lived righteous lives, God would provide for our needs, including supplying that water.

Water scarcity stands as a critical element of famine, threatening food production, environmental balance, and social and political stability across the globe. Human demands for water have spiraled beyond the capacity of the earth's natural systems, with underground water tables falling in regions like the U.S. Southwest, Great Plains, India, northern China, north Africa, southern Europe, and the Middle East. Agriculture, which uses about 65 percent of water from rivers, lakes, and aquifers, suffers greatly when droughts strike, as governments often prioritize urban needs over farms, leading to reduced food production or crop failure due to insufficient irrigation. Polluted or undrinkable water poses an equally grave menace to life, with serious bacterial contaminants found in a significant portion of treated drinking water in the United States. Over-pumping in areas like Israel has caused seawater to invade key freshwater sources, while salt buildup in irrigated lands worldwide lowers crop yields. Man's efforts to compensate for the lack of rainfall through increased irrigation have harmed the environment and diminished the ability to grow food. Globally, water use has tripled since 1950, with dams causing devastating effects upstream through flooding and relocation, while downstream farmers and fishermen suffer from decreased water flow. Modern engineering, though successful in delivering water to people and farms, fails to protect the ecological functions of rivers and aquatic systems, leading to degraded deltas, shrinking lakes, disappearing wetlands, and species on the brink of extinction. The Creator blesses the earth with water according to obedience, but human misuse of resources results in destruction. Competition for dwindling water supplies intensifies as water tables fall and rivers dry up, with conflicts arising over shared river systems in regions like China, Bangladesh, Israel, Palestine, central Asia, and between the United States and Mexico. Water scarcity in the Middle East has historically fueled tensions and armed confrontations, as seen in Israel's strategic gains of water resources after conflicts. Future wars over major rivers crossing international borders are foreseen due to thoughtlessness and ignorance regarding food supply. The lack of water is tied to sin, bringing affliction through drought and famine as a form of punishment. Obedience to God ensures rain falls as needed for the health of agriculture, the environment, and people, with God promising showers of blessing to the obedient.