Crossroads

John 4:28-30 “28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.”

As I cut into a watermelon this morning to cube for easy enjoyment, my daughter, who has always resisted my urges to taste this incredibly luscious fruit, watched me intently. When I noticed that she was watching, forgetting all of my other failed attempts, I told her she should try some since she has started to workout more and has been eating cleaner. After a long pause she finally said, “give me a small piece”. Before handing her a small cube I heightened my selling pitch by telling her it would be a perfect afternoon snack that would leave her feeling so full. As she placed it in her mouth and began to chew on it, her new look of optimism changed quickly to disgust. All I could think about is how hard it is to change a person’s mind once they have made it up.

On a more serious note, there are times in our lives where it would serve us well to change our minds. Oftentimes when this is necessary most and the hardest for us to do is when God is trying to get us off of the road we have chosen for ourselves and onto the right road, the purpose path He has paved for us before birth. These moments in our lives remind me of crossroads, where a wrong turn can cause you to end up far from where you should be, more or less lost.

In our key verse, we find a woman that was a well known outcast of Samaria. Jesus, as He often did (and still does), disregarded the social barriers and conversed with this adulterous woman that was avoided by so many. Jesus, on a mission to change her life, sat tired beside the well she came to draw water from. When He began to ask her to draw some for Him, she was completely shocked since Jews and Samaritans hated each other. Although He was tired, His request was purposed to position her at a crossroad where she could see a better way had been prepared for her. To get her to see that, Jesus revealed some ugly truths about her: she had had 5 husbands and the one she was with now was not hers. Rather than pulling away from Him and continue to go down the wrong road she was on, she allowed the love of Jesus to minister to her deep places of need and was able to leave that encounter forgetting how people viewed her, forgetting that she was not supposed to be so vocal, forgetting that her sins were out in the open and chose the road of a witness. Like this Samaritan woman, you will embark upon crossroads, places in your life where you will have your uglies exposed to help you choose to go down the road God would have you on in order for you to experience the good He has prepared for you. It is my prayer today that you will not resist the urges from God to change your mindsets, change your attitudes, change your direction, because when we can change the inner attitudes of our minds we can change the outer aspects of our lives.

Let’s pray.

God, I am awestruck and encouraged by your omniscience. You know me intimately and you love me deeply still. Thank you for revealing to me the ugly truth that I need to hear at the time that I can handle it. I know that your heart for me is to be on the right road, the road that leads to your will for me. Thank you for your Holy Spirit that provides the direction I need to please you. Amen!!