Mood

Building One Another - Vol. 10, No. 20
Dear Friend, Do you ever find yourself sitting around feeling tired and someone walks up to you or phones you and you are just not in the mood to attend to them?  Jesus seemed to have had that experience. John reports that Jesus and his disciples traveled into the region known as Samaria.  “Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink.’” John 4:6-7 Certain things leap out.  Jesus was tired.  It was noon.  It had to be hot.  He was hungry.  I know I would have been in no mood to engage a person in a serious conversation. A stranger walks up.  Now it’s no surprise Jesus asks her for a drink.  The fact that he would ask her, a Samaritan woman, for help was a surprise to her and she asks him why he did it. I can imagine just saying, “It’s hot and I am thirsty,” hoping for some water and then some leave-me-alone peace. Jesus takes another path.  Mood or no mood to talk he engages the Samaritan woman in a fascinating conversation that gently and wonderfully leads her to faith and the woman’s whole life is transformed. Ministry is not a matter of mood but of opportunity and trust in the presence of the Lord who loves working through us in the lives of the people he positions near us. So whatever your mood may be this moment and every moment, ask yourself, who is near you or in your life and how will you allow the Spirit of God to touch those who are around you with hope and life?
With joy - E. Stanley Ott Copyright 2011 E. Stanley Ott  *Scripture from the NRSV
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