A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink’.” John 4: 7
I like the irony of this verse where Jesus is the one asking for water, and the woman is the one who is thirsty. She just hasn’t realized it yet. Encounters with Jesus have a habit of doing this to us. Opening our eyes to what we truly need. The woman was probably going through her everyday routine. Gathering water, cooking food, keeping up with what comes next, when she suddenly becomes aware of how deep her spiritual thirst has grown.
Our wells can run dry quite easily. Often, we may feel much of what we are “about” is beyond our control. Schedules are jammed packed for many where we hardly can think beyond where we need to go next. For others, our days are full of minutes we have trouble filling. In both cases the well can seem to run dry. We may need refreshment and a fill-up. We need to stop at a well.
Jesus offers us the same invitation he offered the Samaritan woman at the well – living water. A spiritual transformation is always the invitation with Jesus. An invitation which is always open and before us. We just have realize how deep our thirst may be.
A simple acronym I’ve learned over the years is SNAP.
S = stop and step out of the routine and habit of life and mind.
N – Notice what is going on in your body, how you are feeling, how depleted you may be, how relaxed you may be.
A = Access the energy and information needed to pivot to a new practice or habit
P = Pivot. Make a change towards transformation to help prevent the spiritual struggle or thirst.
Spiritual growth, nourishment and transformation come from simple life adjustments. For the woman at the well it was the willingness to stop and engage in conversation and share some water with Jesus. In a “snap” transformation began for her and her story inspires us to do the same.
Faithfully Yours,
Rev. Wendy