Good morning,
There
is a lot of talk about buckets these days. All kinds of people are
letting someone dump a bucket full of ice and cold water over their
heads to show support for a group of people who are trying to find a
cure for a very painful and deadly disease. I have no idea if raising
all this money will allow the doctors to find the cure, but I do know
that a bucket was a part of a woman’s plan to solve a problem that Jesus
had many years ago. We read in John chapter four that Jesus had
decided to leave Jerusalem and travel north to his home in Galilee. He
traveled straight through the area that was hated by the Jewish people
called Samaria. He and his disciples stopped for a lunch break and
Jesus sat at a well while his disciples went into town for some food.
Quite unexpectedly, a woman showed up who was planning to get some
water. She was shocked to hear him speak to her since no respectable
Jew would do such a thing, and was shocked again when he asked her for
some water. When she hesitated, Jesus offered to give her some living
water. She said that what he said didn’t make any sense since he didn’t
have a rope or a bucket to get water from that well.
I think that Jesus probably smiled and said “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.” She liked
the idea, but like most of us, missed what he meant. She was thinking
about her need for wet water while Jesus was telling her about finding
eternal life. Those of us who know the Bible stories by heart often
miss what Jesus meant as well. The Lord is promising those who trust
him as Savior eternal life. He is also telling us that this new life he
is giving us has an eternal source of power that will always be enough
to satisfy and empower us no matter what set of challenges we are
assigned as part of our eternal assignments. We find it easy to forget
that what our Father starts he also finishes. When we are given a place
in God’s family and kingdom he has made a commitment to supply all that
we need to carry out his plans for our life in time and the rest of
eternity. Dear Lord, please help us to drink deeply from your endless
supply of the water of life as we face the challenges of life today and
forever.
John 4:11 “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a
bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get
this living water? --13 Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water
will soon become thirsty again. 14 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.
Roy Wisner
