A THIRSTY SOUL
By
 Wanda Payne

John 4:6-7 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore being wearied with his journey sat thus on the well; and it was about the 6th hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, give me to drink.


Scholars say the 6th hour was around noon and that is was customary for women to come and draw water twice a day, which was morning and evening. This woman came to draw when she knew she'd be alone. She wanted to avoid the other women and probably did so because of her reputation.

She was a Samaritan, and Samaritans were not liked by the Jewish people  because they were a mixed race of Assyrian foreigners and Jews. The pure Jews thought them to be unclean and impure. She was probably hated because of that and because she was known to be living in sin. Even though she had been married five times, she was only living with her boyfriend. That was probably the icing on the cake for all the gossipers who gathered morning and night to draw water and gossip. Who knows after five husbands and a boyfriend, its very likely she could have been married to a man that some of the other women had their eye on or expected to marry. That would have fueled the fiery wagging tongues!

I think this was a very lonely woman who was always rejected but always searching for love and acceptance. I think she was rejected and felt rejected all her life for her race and being married so many times. Maybe the rejection was the root of so many bad marriages. Actually this woman was an outcast among outcasts!

I believe she had a very low self-esteem, and self-worth because of her past and lived for carnal pleasures because of her rejection. This would be a major problem with her identity in her marriages. All these things can cause you to pick the wrong person as well as cause failed marriages. There had to have been problems if she was married five times. There could have been abuse in her past such as mental, physical, verbal, and perhaps even sexual abuse. I know how abuse of any kind can make a valuable child of God grow up feeling worthless.

Regardless of her past; she probably hadn't given much thought to her soul. Today she would! On this day she could have come to the well with a sad, heavy heart. She may have been thinking of all the heartache and hopelessness her loose way of living had brought on. She could have been so down and depressed that she wondered what was the use of living or trying anymore. Could have thought if she threw herself down into the well would she even be missed? She was once young, beautiful, and voluptuous; but now age, problems, and past had put wear and tear on her face and body. Today the heavy water pot was not all the weight and burden she was carrying; but she hadn't met Jesus yet!

When Jesus asked this woman for a drink she was caught off guard! She had noticed this sweet looking, gentle faced man trying to cool himself in the hot noon sun but knew no respectable Jewish man would speak to a woman like her; especially a Samaritan woman! She even asked, “How is it that thou being a Jew, asked a drink of me which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans!” She couldn't possibly know that she was about to be offered salvation!

Being unloved and rejected may have been the reason God chose her to be the very first gentile He revealed Himself to! God chose a lowly, unaccepted, unloved, rejected, sinful woman to be the first person to accept Him as Lord and Savior! That is exciting!

Jesus knew exactly how she felt, He had just been rejected, unloved, unaccepted and hurt by his very own people! If anyone knew rejection it was Jesus!

He also knew how she was thirsting for Him and His righteousness; although she herself did not know it yet! In John 4:10 Jesus said to her, “...if thou knew the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, 'give me to drink; thou would have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” The woman was looking at all he'd said in a worldly way, she didn't know he meant it spiritually! Jesus was referring to old testament Scripture such as Psalm 42:1, Isaiah 55:1, and Psalm 36:9 that talked about God being the Fountain of Life and Jeremiah 17:13 Him being the Fountain of Living Water.

Jesus said in John 4:13-14, “...Whosoever drinks of this water (meaning from Jacob's well) shall thirst again but whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” That got her attention! Perhaps no one had ever cared enough to share with her about spiritual hunger and thirst before; but Jesus did!

We would never think of depriving our body of food or water and yet we put our spirit on a fast quite often. The sad part is that our spirit need's feeding ore than our body does. How can we grow spiritually if we fail to feed our spirit? Our bodies are only with us for a few short years but our spirit will live forever; eternally with Jesus Christ if we are Born Again; eternally in Hell if we are not! When we feed our spirit, we are feeding it eternal food!

John 4:15, “the woman said to Him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.” She knew she wanted what Jesus offered her! She was thirsty and she was tired of being thirsty. She said, “Give me this water!”

This woman at the well represents women everywhere, who are hurting, depressed, rejected, and burdened down with guilt, shame and are thirsting for a better life! This symbol of common clay was chosen to show the world; and was taught by Jesus, that God is Spirit! This story confirms the fact that God is no respecter of persons and that Jesus came to show the true, inner meaning of worship. His teaching quickened and enlightened the spirit of this worldly woman! She knew what it meant to take of the water of life freely; and of the spiritual refreshment that came into her own soul after she met Jesus!

How about you? Are you thirsty? Are you tired of thirsting? Are you tired of being rejected and hurt? Are you looking and searching for something; but everything you find still leaves a void in your heart, soul, spirit, and life? If you are, then tell Jesus. Say, “Lord I thirst and I hunger. Give me this water. Take away my hunger and quench my thirst forever with your living water!”

I know what it is like because I've been there before. I hungered and thirsted for years! Nothing I found could take away the pain, satisfy my soul, fill the void, or heal my heart; except Jesus Christ! Nothing or no one! He is the fountain and must be worshiped in

spirit and in truth!

Does Satan have you bound down with doom and despair? Are you in condemnation from past sins? Always remember this, if it is unconfessed sin, it is conviction from God, if it is confessed sin then it is condemnation from Satan! Now you know the truth and the truth will set you free!


If unconfessed sin is keeping you down then confess it this very minute! Confess it to your heavenly father and turn from it! Ask for and accept his forgiveness so you can move closer to the fountain! If it is confessed sin holding you down see it for what it is and tell the devil to leave you alone in Jesus' name then still move closer to the fountain! Either way we must get near the fountain where living water flows. Not in the mud and muck Satan uses to keep us marred up in guilt, shame, and sin.


Run as fast as you can to the stream of life and let Jesus wash you as white as snow! He will forgive you just as he did the woman at the well. Leave your heavy burdens with him then run and tell others what Jesus did for you. Share what He has done so that others will have hope and believe in Him.

There are so many hungry, thirsty souls that are dying to be given and fed the water of life. You may be the faucet that God is planning to use to supply someone else with his living water. You may be the bucket that he uses to tote Jesus to this hungry, thirsty world! All he wants is a willing vessel; are you willing? I hope and pray you are and God will use you!