The Far Reaching Rivers of Life and Leadership: Imagery for an Intentional Life
By: Wes Cochrane
I used to read a daily Christian devotional in high school and college called My Utmost for His Highest. It was written by the widow of a Scottish evangelist and Bible teacher – Oswald Chambers – who compiled notes from her husband’s many sermons into a book of daily devotionals (i.e., religious readings for each day of the calendar year), which she published years after his death. My first copy of the book is heavily dogeared and underlined. Notes and impressions fill the margins of the pages in different colored ink, reflecting the years I spent reading and re-reading the daily sections.
One entry, in particular, has long remained with me – and for good reason: It underpins the vast impact that one human life can have on the lives of countless others. And, it fuels my motivation to live an intentional life.
Chambers begins his entry for September 6th with this line: “A river reaches places which its source never knows.” He goes on to teach on Jesus’ words in John 7:38 – “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Chambers writes of the “victoriously persistent” river “overcoming all barriers.” He concludes with this encouragement to his readers: “If you believe in Jesus, you will find that God has developed and nourished in you mighty, rushing rivers of blessing for others.”
The theme of nourishing water is not uncommon in the Bible.
For example, in the Old Testament, Isaiah 58:10-11 reads, “...[I]f you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.”
Also in the Old Testament, Proverbs 11:25 reads, “[w]hoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”
You certainly do not need to be a Christian to appreciate the imagery that Chambers is drawing on.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) defines the length of a river as “the distance from the mouth to the most distant headwater source.” The “mouth” is the end of the river and that part that runs into a different body of water (e.g., the ocean, a bay, a gulf, etc.). The “headwaters” are the farthest point from the mouth (think the distance between the start of the Nile in Uganda, to the Nile river delta in upper Egypt, pouring into the Mediterranean Sea).
Chambers’ simple opening line forms the heart of his powerful analogy to our lives – we are all river headwaters, and our lives are the rushing rivers that flow from them.
When I consider this idea, I’m filled with a sense of beauty, a sense of humility, and a sense of power.
This idea fills me with a sense of beauty because it gives tremendous meaning and purpose to our lives, especially as intentional leaders. As leaders at home, at work, and in our communities, we know there is no question that our lives impact others. The real issue is whether that impact is positive or negative – whether it is life-giving or life-sapping. As the USGS notes in some of its educational material for students:
“The phrase "river of life" is not just a random set of words. Rivers have been essential not only to humans, but to all life on earth, ever since life began. Plants and animals grow and congregate around rivers simply because water is so essential to all life. It might seem that rivers happen to run through many cities in the world, but it is not that the rivers go through the city, but rather that the city was built and grew up around the river.”
This idea fills me with a sense of humility because I realize that much of what I “achieve” may never be known to me. “A river reaches places which its source never knows.” How utterly humbling. I don’t know about you, but I’m so painfully conditioned to want positive feedback and affirmation that I’m succeeding and making a difference in the world. This is understandable, but it’s incredibly self-centered. The river’s headwaters have no idea how responsible they are for nourishing the millions of lives and communities that live along its banks down river. As the headwater in my own life, am I OK with that? Can I live at peace with that? Can you?
Oswald Chambers did not live a long life; rather, he died at age 43. While ministering to allied soldiers in World War I in Cairo, Egypt, he was stricken with appendicitis on 17 October 1917. When urged to go to the hospital, he initially resisted, citing the fact that the beds would need to be reserved for the coming wounded during the anticipated Third Battle of Gaza. On 29 October, a surgeon operated on him, performing an emergency appendectomy. However, by 15 November 1917, Chambers expired from a pulmonary hemorrhage (acute bleeding from the lungs).
Chambers never published a single book during his life. At his death, he had been working on a manuscript for his first book. However, his widow, Gertrude Hobbs Chambers, spent the rest of her life editing and compiling her late husband’s teaching and writing into dozens of books. Unquestionably, the most famous book she helped publish was My Utmost for His Highest – a humble devotional that has been in print since 1935, has been translated into 39 languages, has sold over 13 million copies worldwide, and is read and shared online everyday.
Oswald Chambers never saw any of this in his lifetime.
This idea fills me with a sense of power because I realize that virtually anything is possible and there is no ceiling on what my life can accomplish if I’m willing to ignore the credit or glory. Every conversation we have, every effort we put into an endeavor, everyday we show up and serve faithfully at work, every interaction with our children, our spouses, or our neighbors can be the start of a new tributary or branch of our river. It can be the chance to refresh and bless others. In short, the idea of the river rouses me. It stirs my heart. It injects meaning into virtually everything I do. It helps me conceptualize what it means to make an impact.
Imagine the far reaches of your life’s river. What far flung places are your efforts, your encouragement, your diligence reaching? Who is nourished by your life?
Likewise, knowing the value and impact of a single headwater, what will you do to guard yours? What will you do to maintain it and keep it from becoming polluted or being reduced to a trickle?
While we don’t have control, necessarily, on where our life’s rivers will flow, we can be the stewards of the headwaters.
May all our rivers nourish far and wide.
If you’re interested in growing in your leadership practice and being inspired to think differently and unlock greater personal potential, we want to give you a gift. Just click the link below and tell us where to send you 12 Ideas That Will Make You A Better Leader In 2022.
Wes is passionate about leadership development and is a gifted speaker, coach, and teacher. Wes recently spent the last two years as a military prosecutor at the 82nd Airborne Division, where he was consistently praised for his advocacy skills by seasoned trial practitioners.
Wes is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, the University of Richmond School of Law, and the US Army’s Ranger, Airborne, and Air Assault schools. Prior to attending law school, Wes served as an infantry officer in the US Army where he led a rifle platoon, served as the second in command of an infantry company, and deployed to Afghanistan. He is now a major in the Army and is attending the Graduate Course at the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School in Charlottesville, VA.
Wes and his wife, Anne, have four children.
