Joshua. Elijah. Peter. Paul. What do they all have in common? Throughout their respective presentations in Scripture they are portrayed as fierce and devout followers of God. Yes, they are flawed, often times significantly so. Their flaws, however, are not the characteristics that we immediately associate with their names. Joshua was a man of great courage, obedience, and faith while also being an exceptional military leader. Elijah’s life often demonstrated victory in the life of a believer as well as defeat and recovery, offering the walking believer a blueprint by which many of us relate to God today. Peter was the rock on which Jesus established his bride. Paul was the instrument by which much of the New Testament was written. Needless to say, as a man seeking to follow the Lord, I find myself consistently and irresistibly drawn to these men.
So why, then, am I sitting here today resonating more with a Samaritan woman than these champions of the faith? On the surface, for obvious reasons, we have quite literally nothing in common. But this resonation does not reside on the surface. In fact, even though I have read this story from John 4 probably 50 times over the course of my life, it was not until this summer at age 28 that I saw myself reflected in her story. It was a deep spiritual reflection between myself and this unnamed woman at Jacob’s well. One that, admittedly, I was not eager to discern.
This Samaritan woman’s identity is limited only to a description of her spiritual condition. In fact, we are never given a name to attach to her story. This woman’s spiritual condition is one in need of restoration and redirection. She seeks out sustenance at a time of day where no one else will see her because her reputation precedes her. She has had many husbands. She has likely lived a life of obstinance to the law and to her Creator. Her very existence has been a tireless exercise of seeking out satisfaction and sustenance where no life is found. When she comes to this well, she seeks to draw from yet another source that cannot heal her condition of rebellion against the Lord. She has many wells from which she draws a temporary sense of vitality. These wells continue to fail in fulfilling the need that resides deep within her. She is broken. She has been repeatedly scarred by the men in her life. This woman is in need of living water that heals the broken, covers scars, and solidifies the identity she has in her Creator.
While I sit here recounting her story, I do not find myself resonating with all of these characteristics of this unnamed Samaritan woman. I do, however, resonate with one core facet of her story. We have both spent significant periods of life drawing from wells that cannot truly satisfy and sustain. In the face of the truth offered to me by grace extended from the hand of an almighty Creator, I have instead repeatedly chosen to draw spiritual and emotional nutrition from the depth of wells that are intrinsically incapable of yielding life. These wells are comfortable because of their familiarity, but they never quench the core searchings within a longing spirit.
And with that, I go. The World Race is not a cure for a stagnant spiritual life. It is not a $16,267 doctor’s bill for healing a heart that has grown weary from struggle and addiction to sin. Rather, the World Race is an opportunity to dive deep into the well of living water offered by a good good Father. To know Him deeper. To be known more intimately. To reconcile the fact that every heart is continuously in need of further excavation so that a firm foundation can be laid on stable ground. Comparison is the death of joy. I may not always feel like my life is headed down the same path as Joshua, Elijah, Peter, or Paul and more often than not I will be sitting by that well alongside the Samaritan woman. But that does not mean that the divide between the Father and I has grown too far for his love to fill. And it certainly does not mean that the Lord cannot find value, worth, and usefulness with a distracted heart. He bridged the divide between He and the Samaritan woman and ended up drawing many more into His presence as a result of her witness.
So what wells are you drawing from to satisfy some of the deep longings in your heart? Do you desire intimacy with the Father that daily affords you living water?
