Draw from The Well

The Sea of Galilee is not very large, but it must have seemed so to the disciples tossing in its tempest. In the midst of the storm, Jesus said to them: Be of good cheer.
To Paul who was in prison, knowing his life was in danger, Jesus said, Be of good cheer.
To a paralyzed man who could not walk or work or move, Jesus said, Be of good cheer.
To pioneers trekking west at great sacrifice, the Lord revealed, But with JOY, wend your way.

God meant it when he said, Men are that they might have joy.
We understand the joy we’ll have at the end of our journey, when we move on to a better world, but God meant for us to have joy in this life, even in the midst of storms, struggles, and sorrow.
It’s easy to be happy when things are going well, but how can we can have joy when they’re not?

The answer may be found in the story of the woman at the well.
She is a Samaritan, and comes to the well seeking water.
There she finds a Stranger, who asks her for a drink.
The stranger, the Savior, said, "If only thou knewest the gifts that God has for thee, thou wouldst ask water of me.”

What gifts did the Lord have to offer her?
What water did He have that one would never thirst again?
What can we draw from Heaven’s well of Living Water?

I can tell you some of the gifts that I have drawn from wells of salvation:

I have drawn Knowledge: that God lives, and not just that He exists, but that he lives nearer to us than we know. He hears our prayers, even the very thoughts of our mind and desires of our hearts, and He cares, and He answers!

I have drawn Hope –the sure assurance that there is meaning and purpose to all things, that our lives matter, that there will be a better time and place, and it will be worth it.

I have drawn Peace – the peace which passeth all understanding, not as the world giveth, but as the Lord giveth. I have stood in the eye of the storm, and felt the calm that comes from Him.

I have drawn Faith in the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, by whom all things are made possible, by whom all things can be made right, by whose Living Water I have felt cleansed, healed, and been given new life.

We can live happily, even with joy, even side by side with sorrow, as we draw out of the well of salvation the gifts that God has for his children.

Therefore with joy shall ye draw water

out of the wells of salvation.

Is 12:2-3

“Whatever hour God has blessed you with,

take it with grateful hand,

nor postpone your joys from year to year,

so that in whatever place you have been,

you may say that you have lived happily.”

Horace, ancient Roman philosopher