Ever since I was a little tike, I have loved being around and in water. My mother told a story of going to a swimming pool when I was barely walking. My parents put me in the shallow water and I walked in right up to my chin and looked around. My mom wanted to scoop me up fearing I would topple over, but my dad said let him go. I stayed there a long time, happy as could be.
There is something about water that attracts people to it. Ponds, lakes, streams, brooks, creeks, rivers, bays, fjords, shores, and oceans. We love to swim, fish, splash, boat, surf, jump in, dive in, or just sit beside it enjoying the beauty of God’s creation.
Water seems like such a simple substance. One hydrogen, and two oxygen, but there is so much more. Seventy-one percent of the earth’s surface is covered in water. Our bodies are made up of 60% water.
Water is a very polar substance; it dissolves many solids like salts & sugars. One gallon of water will dissolve 3 lbs. of salt. Cleaning would be impossible without water.
It is a key ingredient to life. It holds and delivers oxygen.
Water is the basis for heat load calculations. A British thermal unit is defined as one pound of water heated on degrees Fahrenheit. Water can exist as a solid, liquid, or vapor. It takes 144 BTUs to freeze one pound of water into ice. That is why ice is so good at keeping our beverages cold. It takes 1,000 BTUs to evaporate 1 pound of water into steam. That is why steam is such a good source of heat.
Most substances shrink when cooled and expand when heated. Water follows the same rules until it reaches 38F, then breaks all the rules and expands as it cools below 38F. Water expands the most at 32F, as it changes from a liquid to ice. If water didn’t expand as it freezes, then bodies of water would freeze from the bottom up and kill every living thing in them. But they freeze from the top down, insulating the water below keeping the creatures alive and well.
In my opinion, there is nothing like a cool glass of Lancaster County well water to quench the thirst.
Water is just one more amazing gift and proof that God is the creator of all.
Romans 1: 20 (NIV), For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities _ his Eternal power and divine nature_ have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
The next time that you sit on the beach and watch the waves, listen to the music of a babbling brook, or drink a cool swig of refreshing water, take a moment to praise our Father in Heaven who gave us such a wonderful gift.
Jim Nolt – Executive Board Member
