The group traveling in the Ugly Little Blue Bus had finally made it to New Mexico.
The kids had no idea of the adventures that they would have in this State, but they were certain of one thing; it was hot, and they had no air conditioning! They were traveling through the desert and the kids were very uncomfortable. They complained to the Leader about the heat, but he could not change the temperature. The Leader suggested that they play a game and see who could find the most unusual road sign while they were traveling. There was not much else to do, so the kids began to look at the road signs and they argued about which sign was the most unusual! They saw many of the usual types of signs that are seen along a highway, then they finally saw something different! They passed a sign that said, ‘Blue Hole’ and had an arrow pointing ahead.
The kids pointed to that sign and told the Leader that this had to be the most unusual road sign that day! They asked the Leader what the sign meant, but the Leader just smiled and told them to be patient for a little while.
When they reached Santa Rosa, New Mexico the Ugly Little Blue Bus stopped in a parking lot and the Leader said, “Welcome to the Blue Hole of Santa Rosa”! The kids could not believe their eyes, it was a place to swim! Right in front of them was a pond of water that was incredibly blue and there were people swimming in that pond! The kids could hardly wait!
Soon they had found the place to change clothes and they put on their swimsuits, and they were ready! The Leader told the ones that were not good swimmers to stay close to the edge. All the kids and all the leaders went swimming! Some of the kids who were good swimmers and adventurous jumped off the cliff!
The water felt cold, compared to the hot air, but it was so refreshing! They all had a wonderful day swimming!
That night around the campfire, the Leader told the kids that they were going to talk about the Blue Hole and learn a little more about God. The Leader said, “I know that you were having such a good time today that you might not have noticed some of the details.” He then showed them a picture of the sign at the Blue Hole, none of the kids had even seen it.
The sign said that the Blue Hole is 81 feet deep, the water is always 61 degrees, and the Blue Hole has an outflow of 3,000 gallons per minute! Of course, the kids wondered why the water was always 61 degrees and if 3,000 gallons of water flowed out of the Blue Hole every minute, why doesn’t the hole ever get empty. They also wondered why this pond was in the middle of the desert. The Leader explained that the Blue Hole is fed by an artesian spring. This spring rises from caves deep under the pond and forces 3,000 gallons of water up into the pond every minute. The temperature of the water coming up out of the ground is always 61 degress, it never changes! Every 6 minutes the water in the Blue Hole is completely changed, that is why it looks so blue and clean.
The artesian spring constantly filling the Blue Hole is a lot like God, He constantly supplies what is needed in the life of a Christian.
In the Bible in Lamentation 3:22-23 it says:
The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning.
In the Bible in James 4:6 it says:
And He gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
Mercy is when God forgives our sins and removes the punishment that we deserve.
Grace is when God gives us good gifts that we do not deserve.
God continually gives believers grace and mercy! They never run out and or dry up! Like the artesian spring feeding the Blue Hole, God continually fills our lives with mercy and grace, God is continually renewing our lives.