A QUESTION OF FAITH

With Rev Simon Wearn of Holy Trinity Church WHAT are you thirsty for in life? Thirsty for love? Thirsty for success? Thirsty for health? Thirsty for peace?

Where do you look for satisfaction? Is it in relationships? At work? In retirement? On holiday?

And, does it work, or are you still thirsty? There is a danger in our attempts to quench our thirst – that we end up drinking sea water – our thirst is not quenched and it can drive us crazy!

In the life of Jesus, we read that he got hungry, tired and thirsty too – he was fully human and experienced all our hungers and thirsts. But he also pointed us to a deeper thirst and a greater satisfaction.

One time, when travelling North from Judea to Galilee, he passed through an area called Samaria, where he stopped at a well for a drink. There he met a woman, who was fetching water in the heat of the day – unusual for a culture where women would normally go in groups in the cooler parts of the day. Why was she alone?

Jesus asked for a drink, which was surprising – the request crossing the divide of race, religion and gender – but then offers her something in return, living water. Not having a rope or bucket, the woman questions how Jesus might draw such water, but Jesus points to a different type of water all-together: ‘Everyone who drinks this water (from a well) will be thirsty again, but those who drink the water I give them will never thirst.’ Jesus offers an eternally thirst quenching water.

Unsurprisingly the woman wants this water … thinking it is something of a personal spring, right in her own home – just imagine what she would make of a tap with fresh running water! But before we dismiss her, consider how we can think that the latest gadget or purchase will transform our life … only to find we’re still thirsty for the next thing.

So Jesus changes tack, and asks her a question that reveals a painful string of broken marriages – having sought fulfilment in relationships. It brings her to wonder who Jesus really is – a prophet, definitely, but more? Could he be the promised rescuer?

The encounter is meaningful for us too – for Jesus reveals that we try to quench the thirst in our lives with the wrong things – relationships, money, possessions, work or hobbies. All these offer a temporary relief, but leave us thirsty again. And Jesus’ offer still stands for us – do you want a drink of living water?

If you know you’re thirsty – why not come and drink the water Jesus offers? That true satisfaction, is found in knowing him.