Reason #192

She set off on a journey. Hot, long, out of the way. The afternoon sun beat down on her probably causing beads of sweat to form on her forehead. She was already thirsty, in desperate need of a drink and I’m sure the desert journey only increased her desire for refreshing water. She carried a jar that needed to be filled. An empty jar, probably as empty as she felt inside, that would bring refreshment after a filling visit to the well. And I wonder what thoughts played through her mind as she walked alone. She had no one to keep her company but herself, her imagination. Did she replay previously lived scenarios over and over in her head, coming up with a different outcome each time? Did she silently beat herself up for the mistakes she had made in life? Did she think “why” with each step she took? Did she mourn over her circumstances, her past, her scars? Did tears mix in with the sweat beads that rolled down her face as she trekked along this lonely, dusty path to the well? With each step, did her desperation and discouragement grow? Desperate for a change, desperate to be filled with something good, desperate to be healed from the hurt she felt deep down? A woman, one who had been rejected multiple times, seeking something different, something better but wondering if it was ever even a possibility for her. A woman who wanted out of these entangling circumstances that were now her life. A woman who wanted a different life. And maybe she didn’t admit it, maybe she would never say those words out loud, but I wonder if she regretted the decisions she had made. I wonder if she felt totally hopeless as if it were too late for a turn around. Chalk it up to a loss, to multiple losses, and just move on with life… a life full of regret and shame.

The Savior set off on a journey. The Living Water, a little worn out from the heated desert walk, was in need of a refreshing drink of water so He stopped at the well. He sat down and He waited for her to meet Him there. A divine appointment, but little did she know. And I wonder if she walked up to that well and turned her head slightly away so that He couldn’t see her face. Maybe if she didn’t look at Him, He wouldn’t notice her. Because what if she knew Him. He may ask her a question, an embarrassing question, and she’d have to answer Him in shame. It’s just easier to keep shameful secrets to yourself rather than risk the potential of being judged. Maybe, as she caught a glimpse of His face, she sighed a little in relief realizing she didn’t recognize Him and was safe from any dreaded questions. But He asked her. He noticed her. He spoke directly to her, and she couldn’t avoid Him. If only He knew who she was. He a Jew, she a Samaritan (and a woman on top of that), so why was He talking to her anyway? Why was He trying to make conversation with her, get to know her? If He knew the real her, He wouldn’t want a thing to do with her. If He knew her past, He’d be quick to reject her too.

But as He spoke to her, acknowledged her presence, didn’t push her away or ridicule her, she found herself in the middle of a deep conversation with this man. A man who seemed different from the rest. But what was it that made Him so different? Was it the compassion in His voice? The love pouring out from His eyes as He watched her dip the empty jar into the deep well? And then the dreaded question came, and she answered well enough, being careful not to expose too much to this stranger. But He knew her. He knew her story. And even knowing her story, the yucky details of her past and even her present, didn’t turn Him away. He didn’t demean her or reject her as the others probably had. Rather, He offered her something. The exact thing she was looking for. A change, a new start, something better than she could have ever imagined, refreshment, fulfillment, truth and love. Most of all, He offered to pull her out of her circumstances, out of the mess of life, to heal her scars, redeem her past, and give her a new life. Not a life of loss or shame or regret but a life of gain, of joy, and of abundance.

Who was this man, this stranger who was so accepting of her? Who was this One who knew everything about her yet still desired to have a relationship with her? The Messiah. The exact one who came to save her life. And here He was, making a point to meet her at that well and fill her because He loved her too much to leave her in her current state of loss and despair. He cared too much to let her wander through the desert alone and hopeless. And He began to quench that thirst for more.

“The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could be possibly be the Messiah?” John 4:28-29

And so she left her jar there realizing that the water in that jar, that well water, didn’t matter anymore. She didn’t need it because she had found the Living Water. That well water wasn’t what she needed to quench her thirst, He was. And she had no clue, as she walked that solemn, depressing path to the well that she was going to find something to not only fill her empty jar, but to fill her empty heart. Back into the village she went, but back with a story. An amazing story. Because she realized the Living Water had given her something to talk about. A reason to share her scars. A reason to no longer live in shame. He had given her a reason to live, and live out loud.

So I’m grateful that He waits on us to come to the well. I’m thankful that at the end of our long, dusty journey through the desert, He is there waiting to fill our emptiness with His refreshing water. And as He listens to the sorrow in our voice, as He looks into our tear-rimmed eyes, as He examines our heavy hearts and sees our regretful scars, I’m thankful that He is faithful to pour out that refreshing water, that redemptive Living water into our lives. And so we leave behind our empty jars at the well with Him, we turn around, go back, and we begin to share our story. A story that now has a new twist, a new plot, and one worth that is worth telling!

#192 - Because we can leave our jars at the well and be refreshed by the Living Water.

Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” - John 4:13-14