And if we don't measure up to the
"American Dream", we fall into depression, jealousy, unworthiness,
self-hatred, discontentment, and
other toxic seeds the devil plants in
our hearts.
Or if I stay in a "settle for less" relationship or date a random guy for a
free meal (without praying) then I
won't be so lonely. I have done all
the above.
But I love what Dr. Cynthia Hale says
about being desperate in relationships (any type):
"A desperate person is often a reckless person, not discriminating
against what type of company to
keep."
But WE are daughters of God NOT
women of this age (Romans 12:1).
We must channel our desire to
quench our physical thirst like Xena
the Warrior Princess by violently
going after God.
Our thirst is nothing new under the
sun. Women have had this thirst for
thousands of years, since Eve feasted her eyes on the fruit from the
Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
(Genesis 3).
We have to see how to quench our
"Thirst" by examining Jesus and our
"Thirsty" Samaritan sister at the well
(John 4).
The overall account between Jesus
and the Samaritan woman at the
well reveals Jesus to be a radical of
His time.
Jesus broke cultural, racial, religious,
and gender barriers during the conversation (John 4:1-26). The three
things I love about Jesus in this passage are:
After long
days of ministry through baptism
and making disciples, Jesus went to
the well and I believe He was
waiting to quench the Samaritan
woman's thirst. She didn't know
that His trip to the well would
change her life forever (John 4:4-9).
Jesus longs for you and has your
name written on His hand (Isaiah
49:16). Just as He pursued to
quench the Thirst she was experiencing, He longs to do that for you.
No commas or conjunctions. The woman at
the well had a bad reputation because she had five husbands, was
living with a man who was not her
husband, and was considered an
outcast. To top it all off, she was a
woman (second class status in society at that time) and of Samaritan
ethnicity, which made her hated by
all Jews ( John 4:16-17).
But, despite all of these labels, she
allowed Jesus to seek her heart and
Jesus broke through the barriers to
quench her Thirst.
To understand why Jesus didn't follow the social norms can only be
answered at the Cross. He loved her
in spite of what she had done and
would do! This same love is available for us as daughters of the King
as long as we keep our thrones reserved for Jesus only. And even if
we don't, He still loves us when we
don't regard Him as our number
one.
When Jesus comes to the well and
asks the woman at the well for a
drink, she sees He does not have a
water pot. So I can imagine her giving Jesus a side-eye look when Jesus
says that He can give her living water (9-10).
The Message Bible translation always keeps it real!
Jesus then responds with (v. 13-14),
"Whoever drinks of this water will
get thirsty AGAIN and AGAIN. Anyone who drinks the water I give will
never thirst-not ever. The water I
give will be an artesian spring WITHIN, gushing fountains of endless
life" (MSG).
The same Thirst that we are trying
to quench will NEVER get quenched
by
achievements,
possessions,
hangout spots, f ood, men, etc.
None of these things will quench,
but that same urge within can be
satisfied ONLY by Jesus.
After the conversation with Jesus,
she left her water pot (v. 28) and
told the entire City of Samaria that
she heard the good news of Jesus
Christ. She forgot about the water
she needed. Her Thirst was
quenched instantly because she allowed Jesus to seek her, she accepted the love of Christ, and she believed that Jesus could only quench
her Thirst. She obeyed her Thirst :)
Don't drown out your true Thirst
designed for Christ alone with temporal things. He is pursuing you at
the well and is waiting to quench
your Thirst.
Jesus wants His daughters to live a
life fulfilled and in abundance not in
scarcity.
Fill that vacuum of your soul with all
of Him by reading your Bible, listening to awesome worship music like
Kim Walker and Misty Edwards, and
surround yourself with a community
of Godly women.
Give all of yourself to Him and your
paths to your career, relationship,
ministry, and the other dreams
won’t lead to a dead end.
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