From John 4
Steel yourself. Take your heavy jar and clutch it to you, a
pretense of purpose, a flimsy shield against the stares. March out into the
heat of day, and pretend not to notice the silence or the smirks. Pretend you
are not desperately lonely, longing for anyone to see past the name they have
created for you. No, the name you created for yourself. Put on your sexy
haughty smile and do not care. Pretend not to understand what men think when
they look at you and why the women turn away. Why they are afraid.
Swallow the dismay that rises to your throat when you see a
Man at the well. Waiting. What is He
waiting for? A Man. He is a Jew. Should you leave? Your gut tells you to
leave but no, you need water. Lower your head and say nothing. He will not dare
speak to you, a Samaritan and a woman.
You almost drop the jar when, in the kindest voice, He asks
you for a drink. You look up and He is gazing at you with a look you have not
seen before. It is a look that carries no judgment and no demand. “Why do You
even ask me this?” you blurt, and He smiles.
In that moment your life changes, when this Man sees you. He doesn’t just look. He sees.
Absurd, but you find yourself talking as you have talked with no one else, and
He listens. You find within yourself a well of need surging up unbidden, and He
receives the outpouring. His answers are hope. Here is a Man, looking at you
like you matter, giving instead of taking, making you real. His gaze clothes
you. And you see that He asked you for a drink so you would know you really had
nothing to offer Him, nothing you could do for Him. He is the one who quenches
thirst.
He tells you who you really are. He tells you all you ever
did. And He does so simply, without blame. His words of you carry the weight of
your wounds. You are so lonely. You have
been rejected. You long for love. He offers you what you had not even let
yourself long for. Peace. Rest. Acceptance.
This is what He does. He transforms you into who you already
are, only you could never find yourself without Him. He looks past what the
world has told you and He tells you why, and He tells you it is all right. You can put down your jar. He is the
water. His water is life, and it is within you. You can raise your head without
shame. And now, when men come to you, you can lead them to hope. You can show
them what you have found. Who you
have found. You can watch their transformation. You can be free.
