As much as the Lord uses water as a metaphor, we would do well to take heed to its importance in life. Water is a necessary element of all living things. God has made it so. You can learn how to encourage your child to be thankful for clean water, in a world where so many live without the safe water we tend to take for granted.
The references to water appear 722 times in scripture. If I try to tackle the significance of water in God’s Word, I fear I wouldn’t do it justice. I certainly couldn’t do it in anything written under the length of a novel.
Water was significant enough to flood the entire Earth. It also was powerful enough to be called the water of life when referencing the Holy Spirit itself. We can help our children understand its significance in God’s Word and in how it is a necessity for our very own sustenance.
Ephesians 5:25-27 talks about being cleansed by the washing of water with the Word of God. Water washes us or cleanses us, just like the Word of God purifies us. What if we had no water suitable for cleansing us and providing us with what we need to drink?
All around the world, people, children go through life without clean water to cleanse themselves or even drink.
March 22nd is World Water Day, a day we take to celebrate the most precious natural resource we have today. The day focuses on the importance of freshwater and raising awareness of the people who live their daily lives without access to safe water.
This fact should motivate us to encourage our kids to be thankful for the clean water we have so readily available. It’s hard to teach our kids to be grateful for something that is so accessible in first-world countries. We shower daily, if not more. We let the water run while we brush our teeth and wash our cars every couple of weeks without a second thought.
Thankfully, we can be intentional about helping our children (and ourselves) appreciate that precious commodity that isn’t as abundantly accessible to others around the world.
There are surprisingly simple things we can do to encourage our kids to be thankful for clean water. We can take steps to think about the importance of water in our everyday lives and to the significant impact on our lives if it wasn’t so available anymore.
Here are a few ways we can encourage our kids to be grateful for clean water:
1. Inform them about the facts surrounding the lack of clean water access around the world.
Here are a few facts to share with your children from Water.org and UN.org:
- 785 million people (1 in every 9 people) do not have access to safe water
- Every 2 minutes a child dies from a water-related disease
- 1 million people die each year from water, sanitation, or hygiene-related diseases
- The 3rd leading cause of death in children is diarrhea
- 1 in every 3 schools do not have access to basic water and sanitation
2. Reuse your cooking water for the plants around your home.
Make it a part of your child’s chores. Don’t waste your water anywhere (whether from boiled veggies or pasta) but use whatever is leftover (cooled off, of course) for your garden or a neighbor’s garden.
3. Eat vegan or even vegetarian for a day.
If this doesn’t make sense, I understand. Let me explain. We use a large amount of water in irrigation fields to process harvests. It also takes about 440 gallons of freshwater to produce one pound of boneless beef in America (Nature.org).
If we all ate 1 pound less of beef per year, America could save over 144 billion gallons of water. Show this to your kiddos and eat vegan one day to conserve water even a bit at a time.
4. Choose water instead of sodas.
Isn’t it interesting (for a lack of a better word) that in a world where so many people are without water, we sometimes have to force our children even to drink a glass of it? I am ashamed of it myself. Try even these 29 Healthy Infused Water Recipes. to help kids drink more water.
We can be thankful for our water when we are drinking more of it. We also can feel healthier by doing so. Above this, you will not believe this statistic. It takes up to 175 liters of water to produce just half a liter of soda (accounting for the sweeteners, flavorings, caffeine, packaging it, and more). Drink more water! It is a luxury some don’t have.
5. Celebrate the life-giving force of water.
Take your children on a field trip to a nearby lake or river. Take the time to celebrate freshwater by appreciating its beauty. Grab a trash picker and remove any rubbish/garbage you see around the body of water. You can find water conservation areas around you here. Have your children write about the experience.
6. Capture Rainwater.
You can simply capture rainwater with a barrel from your gutters. This will help conserve your local water supply. Think of the things you could use the captured water for.
This is second nature to me now, as I live on an island where our primary water source is from rainwater. It is great to wash your hair, wash dishes, to clean your car, water your plants, and so much more. Using water for these things saves on the water you would have used from the water supply company.
7. Make simple daily changes.
Little changes can get your whole family to be thankful for the ready supply of water. Try using a bowl to wash your fruits instead of letting them run under a faucet. Use a glass of water to brush your teeth instead of letting the water run. Always check for leaks in your home, take shorter showers, and wash clothes only once a week.
We had a cyclone come through our island last year, and we had no power for 6 weeks. We only had rainwater, and it was a saving grace. Give it a try to show your kids how our freshwater should be appreciated.
8. Teach your children to be thankful because God created it.
Use these resources to teach your kids about the water cycle in your homeschool and let them see the glory of how God has created it so wonderfully.
FREE Water Cycle Unit with Fact Cards
Printables All About the Water Cycle
FREE Water Cycle Unit with Fact Cards
What is quite sad is that although others around the world lack clean water, Americans use about 80-100 gallons of clean water a day (Nature.org). I feel guilty, just thinking about it. We don’t even use this water for drinking. We use it for showers, baths, laundry, dishes, and other household activities. The least you and I could do is learn how to encourage our child to be thankful for clean water in small ways.
When all we have to do is turn on a faucet for clean water, we can see how easy it is for us not to appreciate it. Let’s all do our part not just on World Water Day but throughout the year with our families to be grateful for clean water. We all know that tomorrow is never promised, but we surely can try to make it a little better than yesterday.
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Jeannette is a wife, mother and homeschooling mom. She has been mightily, saved by grace and is grateful for God’s sovereignty throughout her life’s journey. She has a Bachelor in English Education and her MBA. Jeannette is bi-lingual and currently lives in the Tongan Islands of the South Pacific. She posts daily freebies for homeschoolers!
