True Value

I totally wrote about this passage only 12 days ago but God is teaching me through this story over and over again! I thought I was done learning from this passage for now but it just happened to be the Bible lesson that I taught tonight at Vacation Bible School! And, even though I've seriously read this passage 20 times over the past couple weeks, God was faithful to teach me something through it, again.

John 4 tells the story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan Woman at the well. We're told that is around noon when Jesus sat by the well. The Samaritan woman came to draw water from the well around that same time. Jesus speaks to her, asking her if she could give him some water to drink. She is flabbergasted by His willingness to speak to her. She was a Samaritan and a woman, so He had two pretty good reasons to ignore her. But Jesus doesn't ignore the ones He loves, does He? She ask why He is talking with her and Jesus explains that if she knew who He was, she would be asking Him for living water. She is confused by His comment and wonders where this living water can be found. Jesus explains that anyone that drinks from the well will be thirsty again but those who drink of the living water will never thirst. He tells her to bring her husband to the well and she says that she doesn't have one. Jesus knows she's being honest and proceeds to tell her about her past divorces and the man she is currently living with but isn't married to. She is blown away by His knowledge of her and immediately knows He isn't just an average Joe. She runs to tell everyone to come and meet "The One who told me everything I ever did!" She tells them about the Messiah and many are saved.

While preparing for VBS today, I realized that this Samaritan woman was going to the well at a very odd time. Most, if not all, of the women went to the well early in the morning and late in the evening because it would be much cooler then. Drawing water from the well wasn't an easy job. They had to carry heavy jugs and a long rope to reach down into the 100 foot deep well. The noon-day heat would have made this job miserable. This Samaritan woman chose to go to the well during the worst part of the day. Why? Well, the Bible makes it clear that she had had a difficult life when it tells us that she had been married 5 times and was currently living with a man that wasn't her husband. We can infer from that information that this lady didn't fit in with the rest of the ladies in the village. She was probably sternly judged and victim of all kinds of gossip. It would make sense that she wouldn't want to go to the well when all the other women would be there. She probably wanted to keep to herself and avoid all of their judgmental stares. We can also infer that she had probably been treated poorly by one or more of her 5 husbands. Not to mention, that getting divorced 5 times would more than likely cause her self esteem to be very low and her emotions to be all over the place. 

So, the fact that this woman ran into the Only One that knew her true value was no coincidence.  She was quite possibly a woman whom no one in the village cared for and who didn't even really like herself but the Messiah chose to speak to her. Jesus knew her and valued her. Her worth was not determined by the opinion of others OR her opinion of herself.

I've learned a lot from this story over the past few weeks but this is what I've been needing to hear. When the woman truly understood who the Messiah was and believed that He truly valued her, she was never the same. This woman who purposefully went to the well during the hottest part of the day so she didn't have to see the other folks from the town, went running to tell them all about Jesus!  His opinion of her mattered more than their opinions or her own! 

Today I am grateful for this story. I have read and read and reread these verses and I've learned so much from my Jesus. The truths I've learned today are crucial for me, as a woman. I'm sure I'm not alone! I've struggled everyday with understanding my value. I've let my weight, my success, my salary, my grades, my family, my clothing, my abilities, and everything else have a say-so in how valuable I am. But Jesus says, "Tori, not one of those things matter! You are valuable because I say you are! You are valuable because I designed you just the way I wanted you. Nothing can change your value. No one can determine your value, except for Me." I am thankful that my worth comes from the One who created me and even though I continuously struggle to grasp this truth, He is faithful to keep reminding me. Lord, help me to truly understand how You see me so that I will be forever changed just like the woman at the well.