"Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well." {John 4:6a}
So....
We {the ladies of our awesome little church!} had our Ladies Fall Fellowship/Bible study last week. It was such a blessing, and full of laughter, but when my pastor's wife began to bring the devotional, I was totally not paying attention.
"Wanna know why?"
Because after we'd turned to the Scripture from which God had led her to bring our study, God arrested my attention so completely, inspiration hit, and I was scribbling this from-God's-heart-to-mine encouragement in my journal before I lost it!
(Don't worry! What God gave me actually had a lot to do with our Bible study anyway :) And my pastor's wife forgave me ;-)
But here are those notes, from my heart to yours. Not sure if they are all doctrinaly sound lol but it was if a light-bulb clicked on and I was seeing this Scripture in a slightly different hue than normal!
"Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well." {John 4:6a}
(seriously. that small, simple sentence was all God needed to use to encourage me and inspire three pages of writing. Isn't He amazing??? <3 )
"It stuck me as my pastor's wife read this verse aloud that John would include that Jesus-- king of the Universe; wholly mighty in strength-- became weary.
Weary is a word I know well. Too well.
Maybe you as well are far to familiar with that word :(
Maybe I'm reading too much into it, I thought.
But...
Maybe not.
Maybe, God wanted us to know that it's okay to be tired.
He knows. He gets it. He KNOWS where we have been and where we are.
It was Jesus' journey that caused Him to become weary.
Could we, perhaps, use this as a parallel to our spiritual lives?
Jesus understands.
Could we also equate this with our daily walk in general??
Jesus gets it. He got tired.
So He sat down.
Maybe God put a subtle hint in here that in our life's journey, when we get tired that it's okay to sit down, to take a break...
as long as we don't intend to QUIT!!!
{{ouch!!}}
Jesus was planning only on taking a break. Not on STOPPING!
Also this break Jesus was taking?
It didn't stop Him from encouraging another even when He was tired.
Maybe we can even encourage others better when we're taking a break. because at that point?? HE GOT IT! He "got it" well! He was taking a break at the time! So maybe we can encourage others better during or after that break because "we've been there too" and therefore are better equipped to encourage them.
Another thing. We know as believers that because He took this break, a woman's-- a TOWN's-- spiritual needs were met.
We know it was a scheduled divine appointment on His part ;-)
Maybe God slows us down-- has slowed YOU down-- allows struggles, sorrows, trouble, depression, discouragement, unfair/overwhelming circumstances because we can reach certainpeople during our hard spots, because of our trials, that we may never have been able to reach had everything continued to be hunky-dory, smooth-sailing.
We (YOU!!!) can meet the spiritual needs of others because we've had this struggle, because we're going through this problem
It's okay to be tired.
It's okay to take a break!
Just take that break intending to get back up after you are rested!!!
Take that break cognizant of the fact that others need breaks too!!!
Take that break knowing that because you're taking it, God may be able to use you in a way He never could have otherwise!!
Knowing that God can use that break to encourage someone else down the road.
You can encourage someone from a sitting position! ;-)
First picture mine, edited from movie Mom's Night Out; rest of pictures courtesy http://www.freebibleimages.org/