Verses for Vessels

"So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” - John 4:5-7 NIV

Continuing...

Burning Desire

Every soul must know when to seek it's safe place, its resting place. Foxes have holes and birds have their nests. Galilee was where He grew up. It's where He is known and accepted. Nearly all His disciples were from there. After a while it really does get tiring- the debates, the proud arguments, the unnecessary comparisons. How much more evidence would they need? John had declared it; he did not lie. His words and the signs have shown it. But these teachers of the Law, who ought to know, but whose eyes are blinded by their own self will, refusing to hear or see Him; they prefer to argue, rather than enquire. They love to debate rather than engage with the truth with an open heart. O how I long to show them. O how I yearn to unveil myself to them. And O how I must not! They will have to seek me. And they will find me when they seek me with all their heart. Like Nicodemus. One of the teachers he was, but he rose above his own prejudice and attended to the earnest thirst of his own soul. He was keen to know. He showed great desire to understand. Of a truth, the things I offer can only be discerned by those whose heart are renewed. Those whose spirits have been made alive again. You must be born again. Would that all the teachers of the Law were born again! But no. The Father's pleasure is presently what they are neither willing to pursue nor inclined to explore. That is, most of them. Yet Nicodemus came through all that, seeking the answer from the Lord Himself. It is good to know and to see that there is at least one from among them... As for many of their company, they are rather consumed at present by their need to be approved by themselves- comparing my works with John's; comparing themselves with themselves. And presently, I am consumed by a different sort of need. I need to move away from here for a while. There is yet much disdain. They that are whole need no physician. I seek the sick. I am at home with the homeless and the humble.

Route less?

We head north. Back to Galilee. He was insistent we go through Samaria. We could not say no. We had left all to follow. But in our former life, going to Galilee through Samaria was not welcome by most reasonable people of devout faith. How would you even begin to tell of your journey... ? That you let your Jewish feet touch the dusts of that forsaken and apostate region. How unworthy you would become to all friends and family. Which is why, although the other route was much longer and on the other side of the Jordan, going through the region of Perea and Decapolis- more than twice the length of the journey through Samaria, the road to Galilee was always shorter if you avoided Samaria. But not for the Master. He saw it differently. He saw everything differently. We understood He wanted some time away from all the contradictions He was facing from the Pharisees. We understood that Galilee was home. He had friends and family there. He was welcome. But we struggled to understand why He HAD to go through this region of idol worshipping, and law compromising people who had once been followers of the faith. For Samaria was the capital of the rebellion, after the kingdom was divided. And the northern kingdom rejected the house of David and set up their own temple, defying the Laws and the commandments. Then after the kingdom fell they freely intermarried with various peoples and became a truly mixed multitude. They were a living vision of what happens when we abandon the true faith and compromise God's standards. So why would anyone with knowledge of the Law, and faith in the true God, want to mingle with these people?

Sychar

We have been walking now for just over 12 miles. We may have been thinking these things in our minds, but none of us was bold enough to say a word. The sun, the heat, the dry dusty roads; it was getting to us. But He? He seemed more exhausted than the rest of us. He looked tired and weary. As we approached the well before Sychar, Jacob's well it was, He stopped. He looked like He might fall from his weariness. Not quite staggering, but with rather unsteady steps, He walked to the side of the well ... and sat down. At that point as he turned and looked up, our eyes met. I saw that look, like someone who had just accomplished what He set out to do; it looked as if there was rest in His eyes, as though He was all in a hurry to be here at this time. Mindful of His state as we mostly saw it, we dashed into Sychar, the town nearby to buy some food for Him. As we left Him there by Himself, I wondered about those eyes... what was He thinking? What did He know? Regardless of what He may be thinking, or what He may know, we knew how hot and dry the route had been, and how hungry and thirsty He had to be. So I turned my mind to the things we had to do to meet His urgent need. We had to buy Him some food. I'm glad Judas is here.. he's got the purse.

To be continued...

Unheard

Knowing when to speak and when to walk away is both an art and a skill that we have to develop if we must survive our own assignments by God. It is quite easy to assume that because a 'Word' is from God, that your audience MUST hear it. One of the greatest and most powerful gifts given to man is the gift of freewill. It is a wonderful irony that the God who made all things, and also commands that all His creation bow to Him, removes from Himself the necessity of imposing Himself on humans by giving every living soul the freedom to choose. We can choose to love Him. And, we can choose to reject Him. But our choices though free, do not remove us from their consequences. It is such difficulty that often strains the heart of a missionary, who, knowing the terror of God, strives to persuade men and women everywhere. This art of persuasion can be fraught with rejection and disdain and amazement. This was the experience of Jesus. Hence, it would appear, He felt the need to get away. We learn the lesson of knowing when to pull back; to retreat, and return.

Lessons

And because of the emotional and spiritual drain that we can suffer as ministers of the gospel, you would be helping your precious soul by having a place and space where you can go, and return, and be welcome, for who you are: as a son, a daughter, a brother, a husband, a wife, a carpenter, a tent maker.... an ordinary human being who happens to be God's vessel for the hour. Failure to recognise our own inner thirst as we seek to fulfil others' can be both dangerous and devastating in its consequences. In the long run, he that watereth HAS to be watered as well. As we continue the reflection on the passage above, take time to consider how well you have been watered of late. No matter how tedious or tortuous your journey may have been, 'there remains a rest to the people of God' 1 .There is nothing unspiritual or immature about stopping, ceasing from all work, and accepting that EVEN YOU, are thirsty too. If you would take some time out to do so, you would almost find your self by THE WELL AT SYCHAR. And if you are there already, then hold on for a little while more. Let the carers do their thing. Let the board make the decisions. Let your minders do what they must, while you wait on the Lord. Wait, I say, Wait. Something is about to happen...

Prayers: Dear Lord, I thirst for you. I long for your refreshing of my soul. More than works, much more than all charity, I need you to come flooding through. Today I have heard your voice. I choose to wait on you. Come Lord Jesus and set my fountains loose. In Jesus name, amen

Reference: .1) Hebrews 4:9 KJV