Good Morning TSJ Encouragers and Sojourners,
Today I feel like I have more wonder than wisdom.
Yes, it is Wednesday….another week in which we have all experienced a lot of life . For me, I am left wondering what it would be like to truly be wise in such a complex world of choice and brokenness.
At the same time, I think wonder and wisdom do go together. People who never wonder do not feel the awe of life’s mysteries and/or unanswered questions. They likely lack curiosity and the confidence to take risks.
But you are not like that at TSJ. You are curious and often filled with wonder. And this week’s coaching sessions have have inspired me to remember life is a journey and both wonder (awe and/or curiosity) and wisdom are exactly what each of you (and I) seek while negotiating the rugged terrains of this life.
I wonder . . . What is life like for you today?
I wonder, what is the backstory to your current experience of this moment now?.
Like the Christmas song says, “I wonder as I wander out under the stars.” I think we are all wondering many things and we are wandering too. We are looking for ways to satisfy our thirst for things difficult to describe or define.
Today I was reading the story about the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at Jacob’s well. He was tired from the journey and his disciples went into town to buy food while he sat by the well to rest.
It is the most unlikely of events from our human perspective, especially given the culture and prejudices in that time of history in which they met. Just think – a Samaritan woman (Samaritans and Jews were not friendly) was alone at the well in broad daylight around noon to draw water. That was not a typical time for a woman to be there.
Then it happened! She met a man who was a devout Jew. And he spoke with her kindly after he asked her for a drink. In fact it is recorded that she wondered out loud . . . “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?”
I wonder what her feelings were after his answer. Essentially he said that if she knew who he was she would be asking him for water. “Living water, in fact.” What?
Curious, the woman first asked, “Where do you get that living water?” But then she was inclined to wonder who was this man? She also seemed to be puzzled. It sounds like she wondered aloud.. “How are you different than our ancestors who gave us this well?”
Then a delightful interchange takes place. Jesus used water as a symbol of our thirst for Spirit, for God, for … well, I wonder….what is your thirst for in your heart today?
It is likely you thirst for something bigger than yourself, something clean and clear, something more refreshing and satisfying than the mundane experiences we muddle through. So Jesus cleared up her curiosity (and likely her unsettled feelings about this encounter) by explaining that the water we drink, will not satisfy our needs, though we do need it to sustain life. But it will never be completely satisfying – at least not for long.
Jesus also told her what he knew about her. Clearly he knew her story. her journey of life. And he was accurate. They talked. They shared. And he tried to be even clearer of her need for a different kind of water. He summarized his message of being rescued from the cravings of our human nature by the Spirit of God and truth. “God is spirit, and those that worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
The woman’s life was changed forever. Someone Knew the whole truth about her and had told her clearly who she was and who He was.
She was so moved and excited to share her great discovery with other Samaritans. After they too experienced this man they made it known they now believed from their own experience, not just hers. But her joy and passion, her curiosity and acceptance was contagious and pointed them in the right direction. They had listened to her and checked it out. And they discovered the truth about lving water.
I wonder. How does this powerful little story apply to our journeys?
I feel like the woman at the well a lot of times. All caught up in daily struggles, looking for the living water but not realizing it. Here she was Known in a way that rocked her world, and given hope in the most unlikely of places from an unlikely source – a man and a Jew. Not just any man, of course. The Source of Living Water Himself.
What does it mean to be filled with wonder? Being open to surprises and mysteries? Being curious about the apparent mini miracles that happen in our lives everyday?
What might be yours today? We are on both a journey… and are sojourners.
So what is a sojourner? My phone dictionary records this:
sojourn |ˈsōjərn| formal
noun a temporary stay: her sojourn in Rome.
verb [ no obj. ]stay somewhere temporarily: she had sojourned once in Egypt.
So we are all hanging out here on earth temporarily. I wonder …. if we really awaken to that idea how would we think and act differently in this moment now?
Remember … a woman met a man and everything changed within her. It was unlikely but happened. Our days have those moments of grace too.
Now…. let’s go play in the pastures
…. and I wonder. “How would having a sense of wonder change what we are about to say (or do?)”
Margie and Solomon and SJ
