Often, I find it is easy to react when you are feeling yourself under pressure or expected to give a quick response to a situation that requires immediate action.  I really like how Jesus reacts in John 4:5-15, Jesus and the Woman of Samaria are a blueprint to responding to challenging circumstances.

Jesus asks the Samaritan woman who came to draw water from the well is asked by Jesus for a drink. The Samaritan woman replies, “How is it that you, a Jew ask a drink of me a woman of Samaria? John 4:7 So, Jesus directly is speaking to a woman who normally you would not see an interaction between those two races as they did not share things in common. Thus, I was thinking how many times do I avoid coming into contact with people I find difficult to relate to or have had testing experiences with in the past. Therefore, by not engaging is not really solving the issues it’s allowing them to linger.

Additionally, Jesus, offers the Samaritan woman something in return if she gives him a drink. “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is, that is saying to you, give me a drink, you would have asked him and he would give you living water.” John 4:11 Hence, the key is how you approach people it might be with a wave, a smile or a simple hello acting as a catalyst to a way forward for future communication.

Furthermore, what was the gift Jesus was offering the woman and to us? “The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life. John 4:14 What I really like about the gift that Jesus is suggesting is that it is not just a gift for the Samaritan woman but is freely given to all of us. The gift of living with Jesus in eternity that provides us with the courage and motivation to build relationships with all people and God knowing that if we need to, we can drink from that water anytime.