John 4:7-9 (ESV)

A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

“As the woman looks at Jesus and He at her, four invisible walls stand between them. There is a religious wall, a gender wall, a racial wall, and a moral wall. Yet our Lord found a way through all of them. He found her…and then she found Him! Nothing happens by chance in this story. Every detail is part of the outworking of God’s will. And that, I think, is a hugely important point. The woman isn’t looking for Jesus. All she wants is water. But Jesus is looking for her. You have to go to Samaria if you want to reach Samaritans.” (Dr. Ray Pritchard)

Were you looking for Jesus when He found you? For some, salvation comes out of left field, but for Jesus, all of the fields are white unto harvest (Jn. 4:35). Sadly, most Christians probably don’t think that way. Do you? Are there some people you would rather not engage with a gospel conversation? Barna Research has revealed that only 52% of born again Christians share the gospel at least once per year, but I wonder if they were being honest. 52% of Millennials in a recent study actually said it was probably wrong to share the gospel with someone of a different faith. I’m glad Jesus didn’t think—or live— this way.

The Samaritan woman “knew her place” and so did not expect any engagement from this Jewish traveler. First of all, she was a woman. Secondly, she was a Samaritan. Thirdly, she was perpetually “unclean” from a Jew’s perspective. Her eyes were probably downcast as she approached the well. Get in. Get the water. Get out. I’m sure you have been there. Maybe it was the Uber driver, or the repairman that came to your house. Perhaps it’s a co-worker or a neighbor. Maybe it’s the tattooed blue-haired lesbian or the neighbor with the Black Lives Matter sign in their yard. It’s easy to assume they would not be interested in Living Water, but how do you know for sure…unless you engage.

It’s important to note that Jesus did not start with a spiritual question. He merely asked her for a drink of water. Spurgeon notes that, “This was quite a natural way of beginning a conversation; and they will best touch other people’s minds and hearts who do not harshly interject religion, but who wisely introduce it, leading up to it with a holy dexterousness such as our Lord always exhibited. He begins, not with any remarks about the woman’s life, or her sin, or even about his great salvation, but with the simple request, ‘Give me to drink.’”

Pray for God to lead you to a “woman at the well” this week (and every week) and to give you the courage and compassion to engage.