This past weekend I attended a beautiful Women’s Retreat at my church. They spoke
about Women in the Bible and being at the Well. I love the story of Jesus and the Woman at
the Well in John 4.
A Jewish man talking to a Samaritan woman would have never happened back then. But Jesus wasn’t any typical Jewish man. This was God in flesh form, our Lord Jesus Christ. And this woman wasn’t just any Samaritan woman. This was a woman with a very colorful past, to say the least. Yet still, we have an account of our Savior not only speaking to her but offering something to her. And offering not just anything, but offering himself ~ The Living Water.
There is a lot to be said about Living Water and what that represents, but what I want to focus on is that Jesus met this woman at the well. He found her going alone to draw water in the middle of the day, not in the morning or evening as the other more respectable woman did. Because she was a broken woman, a woman with shame, a woman suffering.
I was asked a question prior to this woman’s retreat. “Where has Jesus met you in your suffering?” I thought I had the answer, but after prayer and a few days to think about it, I was reminded where Jesus met me in this difficult time. He met me in captivity.
I am sure you are wondering who put me into captivity. And that answer would be ME.
You see, when my marriage ended, my very first thoughts were: “I have been Betrayed, I have been Rejected, I am not Enough.” Those thoughts turned into the feelings of: anger and abandonment; I became fearful and anxious. In my broken state, from the very beginning, my every thought and feeling was negative and were what threw me into captivity. I imprisoned myself and wallpapered my cell with Lies from Satan.
With something as little as a man’s rejection, I forgot who I was – worse I forgot who God was. I know some of you may be saying, “Don’t be so hard on yourself, those are normal responses in what happened to you. Yes maybe so, but for someone who has the Truth at her finger tips and even some hidden in her heart, the truth was not where I went first.
Jesus met me in my prison – in my shame, in my brokenness, in my suffering, to offer Himself. To remind me of WHO He is: He is my Heavenly Father, the God who sees, Yahweh/ I am – the unchanging God, El Shaddai – the Almighty, and El Eliyon – God Most High. He is Jehovah Jirah- My Provider. He is my Redeemer, My Defender, My Healer and lover of my soul.
He then continued on to remind me of His Promises: He will never leave me nor forsake me, he will bind up the brokenhearted (but I had to trust him my heart), He will not let the waters consume me, He will make beauty from ashes, and He can restore what sin has destroyed.
And then in His loving kindness, He reminded me of WHO I am. In spite of being an unworthy candidate, I am His Chosen, I am His Beloved Daughter and I am His Bride who He is making ready for His return.
What do you think happened next?
Well the walls of my self-built prison came crashing down, destroyed by Truth. John
8:32 says “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
I don’t know if you are in the middle of suffering or brokenness, I don’t know your circumstances or trial, but I do know Jesus will meet you where you are if only you ask. I do know that you can speak the same Truth at the lies that have imprisoned you and you will be free. You can even start by reading the list I made earlier and maybe even add your name. These Truths apply to you too. You are His Beloved!
The beautiful privileges of being His Beloved is that He wants you to know and believe Him (Isaiah 43:10). And to know Him and Believe Him will mean you will move on to what He has next for you outside of captivity. He wants to restore you and remake you into His Bride.
For me it was the Wilderness. Yes, I know you are still waiting for that post. I thought that is where I started, but no that is where I went after my captivity. So He could make Himself known and to begin to show His Mighty works.
“But we have this treasure in Jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to GOD and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed, perplexed but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-9
Krista Bjorn says
Dear Amy, I’m so glad you are finding such deep comfort and life in the midst of your pain and loss. XO Wishing you continued courage and strength to build a thriving life with your kids, friends, and family. XO