John 4:7-14: A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”
Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
OFTEN, when adversities come and we’re in the wilderness—dark desert places of our lives—weary and worn, life dries us up, makes us thirsty, and we draw from wells without water, when all we need is REFRESHMENT, LIVING WATER from the everlasting WELL of GOD: JESUS CHRIST.
Instead of putting our FAITH and TRUST in GOD, relying on HIM or HIS SON, JESUS, as our PROVIDER, our STRENGTH, our ROCK, our SOURCE, and our LIVING WATER, we usually try to draw everything we need from man-made wells that often leave us unsatisfied, still thirsty and dried up, and in our quest to have our needs met and our thirst quenched, we’ll often wander in our dark places, losing hope in the PRESENCE and PROMISES of GOD, losing sight of the LIGHT and LOVE of GOD, and we’ll drink from every fountain we can find except the FOUNTAIN of RIGHTEOUSNESS found in JESUS CHRIST.
We’ll often drink from the fountains of our families, our friends, our jobs, our communities, our spouses, our schools, our denominations, and our political parties, hoping they’ll fill and sustain us, strengthen and empower us. But what happens when these wells run dry or worse, they become empty idols we depend on, put our faith in, and worship more than we do the REAL SOURCE of LIFE, REFRESHMENT, POWER, PEACE: The LIVING GOD?
GOD wants us to put our trust in HIM, leaning on Him more than leaning on others. He wants us to know that without Him, we can do nothing, and LIFE ETERNAL is found in Him through His SON, JESUS CHRIST.
This means our BEST HOPE, our SALVATION, and our PROVISION are not found in wells without water or wells that run dry but in GOD, the FATHER, the SON, and HOLY SPIRIT, and maybe this should be our prayer when we’re in the wilderness—the dark desert places of our lives, weary and worn:
Father God, thank You for protection, provision, healing, deliverance, and strength. When we're thirsty and dried up, Lord, fill us with Your living water; fill us with Your Presence, Your Spirit, and help us rejoice in You, even in our wilderness—our dark desert places. Shine Your Light and Love in every dark, challenging, dried-up place, so that all things work together for good, and refresh our hearts in You, Lord. Thank You for being our Hope, our Salvation, our Comforter, our Well of Life, and our Living Water. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
