People Matter Daily Devotional: September 25

A Word From God’s Word
The woman said, “Sir, give me this water so I won’t ever get thirsty, won’t ever have to come back to this well again!” He said, “Go call your husband and then come back.” “I have no husband,” she said. “That’s nicely put: ‘I have no husband.’ You’ve had five husbands, and the man you’re living with now isn’t even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough.”

“Oh, so you’re a prophet! Well, tell me this: Our ancestors worshiped God at this mountain, but you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place for worship, right?” “Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God’s way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you’re called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.

“It’s who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That’s the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship. God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration.”

The woman said, “I don’t know about that. I do know that the Messiah is coming. When he arrives, we’ll get the whole story.” “I am he,” said Jesus. “You don’t have to wait any longer or look any further.”

John 4:15-26 (The Message)

A Word From Sue Steege
I so love the story of the woman at the well in Samaria. In that encounter, Jesus shows that people matter to God because He’s even having a conversation with this woman (it was unheard of in Jesus’ day for men and women to talk in public—let alone a “loose” woman). It goes further than that, though. He also tells her the truth. She tries to turn the conversation into a religious argument, but Jesus simply says, “I am the Savior you’ve been looking for all your life.” She was changed forever. And it was contagious. Many came to know Jesus because if He could change her, there was hope for anyone.

I think about the people who live immediately around us at First Trinity. The people in our workplaces, on our street, at the Boulevard Mall, at Wegman’s or Tops or UB or the bank or the dentist’s office…all around us. Many of them have no idea who Jesus really is. In fact, many of them see churches and Jesus as cause for a religious argument, rather than a source of truth and refreshment. I am praying that today, we will have the courage to be the kind of person Jesus can use to help the people around us see that He is what they have been thirsting for all their lives.

Sue Steege is the Director of Transformation Ministries.

A Word With God
Jesus, I give my life to You today. Please change me from the inside out and help me be Your light to a world that is thirsting for You. Amen.