Hello friends.  Today we are reading John 4.

This is a very powerful story.

In Jesus’s day, Jews and Samaritans didn’t get a long.  They lived in the same area, but the two groups of people didn’t like each other very much.

You know how today, sometimes on TV you see Republican and Democrats getting REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY mad at each other, because they have different opinions?  Well, this was even bigger than that.  The Jews and Samaritans REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY didn’t like each other.

They didn’t eat together.

They didn’t talk.

Sheesh…that’s rough huh?

Anyway, Jesus was a Jew, but Jesus did not act this way.  Jesus saw a Samaritan women getting water at a well, and he went up to talk to her.

We don’t know all the specifics about this women or all the specific about her sins.  We don’t need to know that.  Sometimes our sins are “obvious”…like you can see what we are doing and see that we are sinning.  This is what this woman was doing.  She was an “obvious sinner”.  All of us sin.  Don’t we?? Sometimes we try to hide it and make it not obvious.   But, she eventually after talking with Jesus she was honest about her sin to Jesus.  And that’s really great.

Jesus didn’t care that this woman was an “obvious sinner”.

He cared about her heart.  He could see her pain.

My 8 year old asked why Jesus does this?  Why does he really want to be with sinners?

Well, it’s because when we realize how much we need him, we open our hearts to him.

My 8 year old said, “So it’s hard for a KNOW IT ALL to open his heart to Jesus?”

Exactly.

Jesus tell us that he is the only one that can satisfy our hearts.  He says he’s like LIVING water.

Does that feel confusing for your heart to be thirsty?

Let me explain.  Right now, while we are stuck at home, my heart is thirsty to have a BIG party.  I want to see all my friends and dress up and eat cake.  My heart is thirsty for that because I’m missing it.

Is your heart thirsty for anything?

Even when we follow Jesus, we will long for things.  But that party won’t make me happy forever.  Even if I got to have it.  I’d feel happy for a little bit, then I’d go back to feeling regular.  Jesus is the only thing that can fill the void in our hearts.

Imagine your heart has a cross shaped cut out in it.  I’ll see if I can attach a picture for you.  Not sure if I’m good enough at blogging to do that yet.

You might try to fill that hole in your heart with TV, or sports, or money, or friends.  But the only thing that will fill the cross shaped hole is Jesus.  Because his love is better than life.

Psalm 63:3 says, “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you”.

Wow.

His love is THE BEST.

Nothing can beat it.

Jesus is for you whether you are an obvious sinner, a secret sinner, a know it all, a tender heart, a cry baby, a tattle tail, a bully…he’s for ALL PEOPLE.

Does that make you feel happy?  It sure does for me.

When you get a glass of water today in the kitchen, use that time to talk to Jesus for a little bit.  Drink your water and then …

Let him help your thirsty heart.