Meet Me At The Well!

The guest speaker at the women's retreat I attended this month delievered a powerful and eye opening message around this. I wanted to put it into a devotion. This retreat was definitely the spiritual reset that I needed. God spoke to me and met me in the perfect ways in which I needed. His perfect ways. His perfect timing. Let's meet Him at the well. 

“The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city…” — John 4:28 (KJV)

The Samaritan woman came to the well carrying a water pot, expecting to leave with water. Instead, she encountered Jesus and left with something far greater --- Living Water.

What stands out to me is that when she left, she left her water pot behind.

That water pot can represent so many things we carry with us—our past, shame, hurt, rejection, disappointment, mistakes, fears, and even the opinions others have placed upon us. We come carrying things we think we have to keep carrying, but an encounter with Jesus can change that. Put those things in the water pot, and leave them behind. 

Jesus knew this woman's story. He knew her failures and the broken places of her life, yet He still met her at the well. He didn't avoid her because of her past. He came directly to where she was.

Maybe that's what Jesus is saying to us today:

“Meet Me at the well.”

Bring the hurt.

Bring the shame.

Bring the disappointment.

Bring the mistakes.

Bring everything you've been carrying.

But after you've encountered Him, you don't have to pick the water pot back up (that you've crumbled up and thrown those problems into).

The woman came to draw ordinary water, but she left telling others about Jesus. What once defined her was no longer the most important part of her story. She had met the One who knew everything about her and loved her anyway.

Sometimes we ask God for Living Water while still holding tightly to an old water pot. But there are things we need to finally set down at His feet and leave there.

Meet Him at the well. Lay down your water pot. Drink from the Living Water—and don't carry back what Jesus is asking you to leave behind. 

---------------

Bear the Burden, Don’t Carry the Load!

God's opened my eyes, spiritually speaking, in recent months to show me that bearing the burdens of others and carrying their load is not the same thing. You can pray a person through their burden and help then, but it's not your job to carry that weight had load around.

“Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” — Galatians 6:2

The Bible tells us to bear one another’s burdens. We should come alongside people when life becomes too heavy. We pray with them, encourage them, listen to them, help them when we can, and remind them they are not walking alone.

But just a few verses later, Scripture says:

“For every man shall bear his own (burden) load.” — Galatians 6:5 *burden translates to load

At first, those verses may sound contradictory, but they aren't.

There are burdens that become too heavy for someone to carry alone, and God calls us to help. But there are also responsibilities that belong to each person individually.

There is a difference between helping someone carry what is heavy and carrying what is theirs.

We can pray for someone, but we cannot have their relationship with God for them. We can encourage them to make wise choices, but we cannot make those choices for them. We can support them through consequences, but we cannot continually rescue them from every consequence of their decisions.

Sometimes, because we love someone, we begin carrying things God never asked us to pick up. Eventually, their responsibility becomes our responsibility, their worry becomes our worry, and their decisions begin controlling our peace.

That's not what bearing one another's burdens means.

Compassion doesn't require taking ownership.

Jesus calls us to love, serve, encourage, forgive, pray, and help—but sometimes loving someone also means allowing them to carry what God is using to teach, strengthen, correct, or mature them.

So ask yourself:

“Am I helping carry a burden, or have I picked up someone else's load?”

Come alongside them. Pray for them. Encourage them. Help steady them when the weight becomes too much.

But don't carry what God has given them to carry.

Bear their burden without taking ownership of their load. You can walk beside someone without walking their walk for them. 

When It's Not Well With Your Soul!

The other breakout session "workshop session" I attended at our women's retreat this month was "what to do when it's not well with your soul". That's a lot to disect and take in and chew on, especially in this sin sick world we are living in. I am reminded of this scripture.

“Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God…” — Psalm 42:11

I love the hymn: “It is well (with my soul).” But what do you do when, if you’re being truthful, it’s not well with your soul?

There are seasons when you can love God, trust God, and still feel very weary inside. Your heart can be heavy. Your mind can be overwhelmed. You can pray and still have questions. You can worship and still have tears.

David understood this. He actually spoke to his own soul: “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?”

He didn't pretend everything was okay. He acknowledged what was happening inside of him, but then he reminded his soul where his hope was: “Hope thou in God.”

When it’s not well with your soul, be honest with God. You don't have to hide your weariness from the One who already sees it. Pour out your heart to Him.

Get back into His Word. When your emotions are loud, you need the truth of God's Word to be louder. Remind yourself of who God is, not just what you are presently feeling.

Pray, even when you don't know what to say. Sometimes prayer isn't a long conversation. Sometimes it is simply, “Jesus, I need You.” And that's enough to turn your attention back toward Him.

Worship anyway. Not because everything feels good, but because God is still good. Worship shifts our eyes from what is happening around us to the One who remains faithful through it all.

And sometimes, rest. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) You don't have to carry everything at once.

Most importantly, remember that how your soul feels today does not determine how it will feel tomorrow.

David said, “Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him.”

I shall yet. That means this isn't the end of the story. So when it's not well with your soul, don't run from God—run to Him. Be honest. Pray. Get into His Word. Worship. Rest in His presence. And keep reminding your soul:

“Hope thou in God.”

Because even when it doesn't feel well right now, the Shepherd is still there—and He still restores souls. “He restoreth my soul.” — Psalm 23:3 ❤️

_____________

Be A Fence Not An Open Gate!

One of the breakout sessions "workshop sessions" at the women's retreat I attended this month was on "spiritual boundaries". I sure needed it. So many times I fight though both mental and spiritual exhaustion, because I still need to learn how to set healthy spiritual boundaries. One of the quotes that stuck out to me the most, during the session, was "be a fence, not an open gate", so I wanted to build on that to share and learn.

Spiritual Boundaries: Be a Fence, Not an Open Gate!

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” — Proverbs 4:23

A fence has a purpose. It marks a boundary. It protects what is inside and keeps certain things from freely coming in. But a good fence also has a gate—and the gate isn’t meant to stay wide open.

Spiritually, we need both.

God calls us to love people, forgive people, pray for people, and show grace. But loving someone does not mean giving them unlimited access to our heart, mind, time, and peace.

You can love someone from across a fence.

A spiritual boundary says, “I love you, but I cannot allow this behavior into my life.” It says, “I forgive you, but that doesn’t mean I have to keep opening the gate to something that continually brings confusion, hurt, temptation, or spiritual harm.”

Even a gate has hinges for a reason. It opens when it should and closes when it needs to.

Jesus loved everyone, but He did not give everyone the same access to Him. There were times He ministered to the crowds, times He withdrew, and times He allowed only a few people close.

Don’t feel guilty for putting up a fence where God is telling you to establish a boundary. Boundaries aren't always walls of rejection; sometimes they are fences of protection.

Ask God for wisdom about who and what you allow through the gate.

You can have a tender heart and still have strong boundaries. You can love deeply without giving everything unlimited access.

Guard your heart. Keep your fence strong. And let God help you decide when the gate should open—and when it needs to stay closed. ❤️