Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.’ John 4 : 13 - 14

This week’s reading : John 4 : 5 - 42

Thought for the week

The psalm that is set for today is 95. Some of us may recall it as the Venite. It begins with the wonderful cry, “Come , let us sing unto the Lord, let us heartily rejoice in the God of our salvation.”

In one short sentence we are reminded that God is God, the One who saves and brings wholeness - God’s Shalom. Alongside the reminder of who God is comes the call to respond. The news of God’s inestimable goodness leads us to sing praises and to sing them heartily!

Our gospel reading for today is one of the most incredible encounters in the New Testament as Jesus meets with the woman at the well. She experiences for herself the salvation of God as she recognises who Jesus is and responds to his invitation to receive the living water. She heartily rejoices by telling her whole village to come and see ‘this man.’

Many of the Psalms call us to respond to God’s love with rejoicing. Living water also refreshes us and gives us strength to be real before God when we don’t feel like heartily rejoicing but rather need to express other emotions and feelings. We are invited to drink LIVING water- we are invited into a real and living relationship with the One who is our salvation - our hope, our comfort, our peace. The One who is love.

Rachel

Prayer for today

Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified:

mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace;

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever, Amen