Yesterday, we focused on sustainment. Today, on being nourished.
In John 4, Jesus sits down with a Samaritan woman. One of my favorite stories in the New Testament, and especially of Jesus. I like when people do things because they’re the right thing to do, and who better an example of integrity and justice but the Son of God who walked this earth perfectly?
He’s sitting with her as she asks the question: why me? and why you? He uses the drink he asks for to introduce a lesson: himself, Jesus, as the living water. The source that can fill up and bring life back to a worn-out heart. The source that has a never-ending well of refreshment, if only we would hand over our hearts and drink from his well.
From what I’ve experienced and from what I know my friends and family have experienced in this last year, we are worn out.
Worn out from the political divides and the nastiness.
Worn out from the COVID restrictions and the social limitations.
Worn out from forced homeschool and the social skills regression we’ve seen not only in our kids but in ourselves.
We’re worn out from the weather (or is that just me?) and we’re worn out from our jobs, from video chatting, and from unfair expectations coming from every which way.
John 4:13-14 — Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.
The thirsty in this parable relates to soul thirst; to long for soul nourishment. This is like the level-up from sustainment. We pray daily for sustainment, and we remain in God’s love and with Jesus’ companionship in order to tend to our tired, worn-out souls and spirits. The sustaining we talked about yesterday is important; the nourishment takes it a step further. Because God wants us to remember that for so long as we remain in His love, for so long as we walk with Jesus on a daily basis—on a moment-to-moment basis—we will be nourished. Our souls and our spirits will be okay. We will make it to the next day, the next hour, the next moment, because we’re not just being sustained from here to there but we’re being filled, endlessly, by the Son of God.
This means that…
when the political divide has drained you, you can bring that to Jesus and he’ll remind you: I will nourish your soul.
when the social injustice fuels your anger and anxiety to the point of soul exhaustion, you can bring that to Jesus and he’ll remind you: I will nourish your soul.
when the COVID restrictions and social limitations threaten your sanity, you can bring that to Jesus and he’ll remind you: I will nourish your soul.
when the forced homeschool threatens every choice that brought you to that moment, you can bring that to Jesus and he’ll remind you: I will nourish your soul.
when the social skills regression places a fear deep in the pit of your stomach and you’re not sure you’ll ever be able to attend another social gathering beyond your four walls with more than 5 people, you can bring that to Jesus and he’ll remind you: I will nourish your soul.
Today, may you remember that whatever is weighing down your spirit to the point of exhaustion, you can bring it right to the feet of Jesus, lay it down, and he will nourish your soul.
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