Friday, February 27. 2015
There are many lessons one can gather from the account in the 4th Chapter of John of Jesus having an encounter and conversation with a Samaritan woman but I will only focus on one feature. We read that Jesus, tired as He was from His walk from Judea to Galilee, sat down by a well in Samaria (the midway point) and asked a woman who had come to draw water there, “Will you give me a drink?” (verse 7) If Jesus was God, and He is, we have to conclude that He didn’t really need her to supply Him with water, He was just giving her an opportunity to do something for Him. This is where we differ greatly from Christ; when we ask somebody for help, its because in most cases, we really need it. In the case of Jesus, He asked for help although He really didn’t need it, and most of us, especially the men, will not often ask for help even though we do need it.
We all know some people that throughout their lifetime are used to doing things for others but when it comes to their needs, they just don’t want to bother anybody. Could that be you? Do you find it difficult to ask help from others and does it embarrass you? If you said “yes”, I’m in your group too. Why are we like that? Do we feel like we failed somewhere down the line? I’ve often heard folks claim, sometimes rather proudly, that they never pray for themselves, only for others, and although that may seem to be a noble gesture, how can we even think that God’s resources run out because we’ve already asked too much for our friends and loved ones ? The truth is that we’ll all need help at one time or another. When we do and “asking for it” is not an easy task, lets ask God to help us overcome our foolish pride and do it anyway. Let’s keep this in mind too: Just as it was for the Samaritan woman, we may be giving someone a chance to do something for someone else, and after all, we all need to experience that blessing from time to time as well. We must remember that when we do things for others, especially when love is our main motivation, its as if we did for Jesus. (See our verse for the week)
Just as asking for help from others requires God’s grace and discipline, so the practice of helping those in need is a virtue that only God can teach. Ever since I can remember, I’ve heard people often say that “we cannot outgive God.” The Bible confirms that truth time and time again. Here are two: (Proverbs 19:17) “He who is kind to the needy lends to the Lord, and He will reward him for what he has done” and Ecclesiastes 11:1 “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.” Summing it up, I suspect that giving to others will easier for you than asking for help. "Are you asking for it" anyway?
Verse for the week (Mt. 25:40) “The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
Note: Some of you even found it difficult to report that you aced yesterday’s quiz, right?
