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Never Thirsty Again | Kimi Miller
S~ “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never have to be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” John 4:15 (NLT)
O~ The woman at the well. Here is a story that most are familiar with. Scholars often say that it is because of her shame (from her past v. 17-18) that she came to get water during the hottest part of the day – most likely because nobody else would be there. Probably so she wouldn’t have to see anyone staring or hear anyone whispering. I don’t know – none us know for sure – I’m just imagining what it would be like.
I don’t have to imagine very hard though, because I have done things I was ashamed of – things I wanted to run and hide from. Things I wanted to avoid and not talk about.
I wonder if that is how the woman at the well was feeling, too.
Water is necessary for life – for survival. This woman was running in survival mode – doing what was necessary to survive, because she was too embarrassed to live.
Jesus offered her a way out – and she wanted it. She thought accepting this living water would mean she would never have to come to the well again; she would never have to lug heavy jars or containers to transport water at the noon hour just to avoid others and the confrontation of her past. She wouldn’t have to work so hard to keep her sins hidden. She wouldn’t have to work so hard to survive. Maybe…she could live.
A~ Sometimes we come to You, Jesus, because we want an easy way out. But You never promised it would be easy – You only promised LIFE – life eternal (v. 14) and life abundantly (John 10:10). We want a solution that means we don’t have to work so hard anymore. But on our own, we will always have to work hard.
That is why You invite us to partner with You (Matthew 11:28-30). You carry the weight of our sins (1 Peter 2:24), so that we don’t have to. So that we can be free. So we can live. This is the what our souls are thirsty for. We are thirsty for You. When we take You in, Jesus, the Living Water, it is like a fresh bubbling spring within us (v.14). Constant. Rejuvenating. Life-giving. And inviting.
This living water washes over our sins – our past and future – and cleanses us. We no longer feel the need to hide and cover up – there is no longer shame to avoid. Instead this Living Water becomes our life source – we are alive and free. Transformed. Made new. And we can’t help but tell others about it.
It’s funny how those same things I (and the woman at the well) worked so hard to hide and cover up, became the very things I needed others to know I’d been freed from. Just like they were for the woman at the well, they became a way for me to talk about the Living Water I’d found.
P~ Jesus, thank You for being my Living Water. Thank You for refreshing my soul. May You always be what my soul desires above all else. I love You. Amen.
Worship | Joni Tyner
S~ But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. Jesus speaking in John 4:23 (NLT)
O~ Jesus is talking to the Samarian woman at the well. She asks him a question about the best place to worship. Jesus responds by telling her to be concerned with the sincerity of her heart, not a specific location.
A/P~ Dear Lord, I pray as I continue to follow and worship You in 2018, I will have a fresh attitude of true worship. Please guide my thinking and lifestyle to that it gives you glory. I pray my prayers align with Your will and that my worship at church pleases You.
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