THIRSTY

adj: deficient in moisture; having a strong desire for something 

Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again…” John 4:13-14 ESV

Most of us have heard the story of the “woman at the well.” We learn quite a bit about her in just a few short verses as Jesus strikes up a conversation with her.

-She was at the well at the hottest time of the day, an unusual time to draw water.

-She was curious, aware, and not afraid to get involved in a discussion.

-She’d had five husbands, and was currently living with a man she was not married to.

And we can assume that she was probably thirsty.  

But here she was at this community well–a common place for people to meet and chat with each other daily–alone.

Why?

Could it be because she was just so tired of trying?

We can assume that she was not welcome with the other women of her community. It was much more convenient for them to ignore her than to deal with her messy and uncomfortable situation. It would be easier for her, too, wouldn’t it? To just avoid their judgmental glances and fake smiles by waiting until they were gone?  

Jesus knew that as much as her body thirsted for water, her heart and soul were even more desperate for relationship–a knowing, compassionate, and lasting connection with someone who would love her just the way she was.

And he was offering her exactly that.

He knew the emptiness she felt after so many broken relationships.

He knew the rejection and disgrace she experienced because she didn’t have a husband.

He knew that it hurt terribly to see the other women talking and laughing without her. About her.

And he knows what it feels like for us, too.

In a recent Cigna study, 58% of Americans reported sometimes or always feeling like no one knows them well. And this was before the isolation of the worldwide pandemic of Covid-19. This lonely feeling is a painful reality for so many more of us today.

Jesus hurts for us when we feel this way, and he longs to give us the closeness, the joy, and the connection our souls need so desperately. One of the most significant things he did for this woman at the well was to give her the privilege of sharing his good news. He gave purpose and joy to a scorned and rejected Samaritan woman by letting her be the one to tell her community that the Messiah had come.

He wants to bring us close to him, and he wants to connect us with others. That is what he so graciously offers when he pours into us his living water, his holy spirit, his refreshing, restoring, life-giving friendship.

INVITE HIM IN

Listen for Jesus to start a conversation with you. He knows everything about you, and he adores you completely. He knows what you need, and he wants to give it all to you in the most amazing, creative, and meaningful ways. Let him be the one to quench your thirst with his living water today.