Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

“It wasn’t for the water that He came, it was for me.” ~ The Woman at the Well

How many times have we heard the story of the Samaritan woman at the well and judged her amidst her circumstances? Jesus even called her out on the fact that she had been married five times and currently was living with another who was not her husband. Boy, isn’t that a storyline to evoke gossip among us! However, Jesus’s reason for calling her out was not from the stance of summoning shame or judgment from others, but rather to prove to her that He was indeed the Messiah. Additionally, through this passage, Jesus demonstrates that His love for each of us is not tethered to our past circumstances. “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:17)

Jesus didn’t visit the well for the water. He went to the well to encounter the Samaritan woman.

Many Samaritans came to believe in Jesus because of the testimony of this woman. We are never too broken for God to use. He doesn’t anchor us to the details of our past. He doesn’t keep tabs on our wrongs and mistakes. When we come to God and ask for forgiveness, He doesn’t turn away and tell us we have gone too far or done too much to be saved. No indeed. He welcomes us with the same love and forgiveness that is offered to all.

Jesus didn’t visit the well for the water. He told the woman at the well that if she drank of that water in the well she would thirst again, but that if she drank of the living water she would never thirst because the water He could give her would become a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.

Oh friends, have you tasted the water?

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• Reflect on those in your circle who might not know of this living water. Who can you share the gospel with this week?
• Do you have someone in your life who may feel too damaged that God can save? Won’t you share the good news of His love with them right away.
• Prayer: Dear God, thank You for Your gift of living water. God, we all praise You that we are never too damaged or broken to be worthy of Your love and forgiveness. Lord, burden our hearts this week with those who need to hear of Your love. Help us be bold in our faith to tell them about the living water that springs forth into eternal life. Thank you for your many blessings, Father. We love you so much! Amen.

Family Devo: John 4

By: Carrington Stuart

Today’s story is from the book of John, and it’s about a very important person- Jesus! In this story, Jesus meets a woman at a well in an area called Samaria. Samaria was a place that a lot of people didn’t want to go to because they thought it wasn’t safe. But Jesus wasn’t afraid- He wanted to be friends with everyone!

When Jesus got to Samaria, it was really hot outside and He was tired, so He sat down by a well. A well is where people used to go to get water; and there, He met a Samaritan woman. This woman had walked a long way in really hot weather to get water, and she came alone because nobody in her town wanted to be her friend. The woman had made some bad decisions, and a lot of people were unkind to her. But Jesus was kind. He wanted to let her know how special she was to Him!

Jesus asked the woman for a drink of water because He was thirsty, and the woman was so surprised. Usually, people didn’t want to talk to her! She asked Jesus why He was talking to her, and He told her that He wanted to teach her how to follow Him. Jesus told her about how much God loved her, and she wanted to tell everyone else about it!

There’s not a single person who God doesn’t love, and it’s our job to tell them about it! So, the woman ran through town and told everyone she knew about how much God loved them and how Jesus wanted to be their friend forever! Because of this, many other people started to believe in Him and followed Jesus! How amazing is that? We should want to tell everyone about Jesus, too!

• How can you be more like the Samaritan woman in this story? Is there anyone that you know who feels left out, or who has no friends, that you could be friends with? How can you be like Jesus and tell them about how much He loves them?
• Prayer: God, thank You for loving everyone and leaving nobody out! I want to be more like Jesus in this story and be friends with the people who feel like they have no one to talk to. I also want to be like the Samaritan woman and tell everyone that I know about Jesus! Thank You for forgiving me of my sins and loving me even when I make bad decisions. Help me to tell others about You and be a friend to everyone, even if they aren’t always kind to me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.