Living water or troubled water? Your choice.

This week's Bible Lesson offers us a very clear choice. Will we choose living water or be mesmerized by trouble waters?

The man Jesus saw, waiting for his healing beside a pool of water, watched helplessly as others got to that troubled water before he did. He spent his time watching for the motion so he must have had some receptivity and expectation of good. But when Jesus asked him if he would be healed, he had a list of excuses he believed were in the way. Troubles. Troubles of all kinds, within himself, being physically challenged. Troubled, without, by being left there with no one to help him get to the pool. When we are faced with a problem, we must be alert not to accept the limitations our human experience would insist are getting in our way. The Christ is just a freely available to us as it was to that man. And when he opened his eyes, his healing of a 38-year-long problem was instantly and completely healed.

The woman fetching water at Jacob's well was surprised when Jesus spoke with her. Jews and Samaritans were bitter enemies. He asks her for a drink of water and tells her she could have asked him for a drink and he would have given her 'living water'. Like the man beside the pool, she sees limits and restrictions. She comments that the well is deep...the water appears to be out of reach...and he has nothing to bring it up. But Jesus knew the immediacy of supply and the infinite goodness of God, who is always prepared to meet the need for His children. Wouldn't we prefer to choose 'living water', a constant fresh supply of whatever is needed in our experience?

The Golden Text from Deuteronomy says, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms:".  God is always present, good is always present. No 'enemy' can triumph over you. You need never feel trapped in some net. God redeems us. The dictionary defines 'redeem' as to pay off a note. Pay it off completely. Debt gone. His mercy is everlasting. We just need to do our part.

Choose.