⁴He had to go through Samaria on the way. ⁵Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. ⁶Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. ⁷Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” ⁸He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. ⁹The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?” ¹⁰Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”

John 4:4-10

Jesus is an excellent example to follow. In this account, Jesus is on his way from Jerusalem to Galilee. On his way, he stops at a well to rest. He is tired and thirsty from the journey. When a woman comes to draw water, he siezes the opportunity, and asks her for a drink. This one simple question opens the door to an interaction that changes not only her life, but ultimately the lives of many people in that village.

Have you ever been somewhere — at the grocery store, filling your car with gas, at the bank or the library — and you feel prodded, almost compelled, to ask someone a question or comment about the day? One day I was in a local park enjoying the water feature and another woman was across the stream doing the same thing. I felt prodded to say something to her and we enjoyed a bit of conversation. I remember that I prayed with her that day before we went our separate ways. I don’t know how that interaction changed her day or even if it did. I only know that I was supposed to open the door to conversation.

I don’t always acknowledge those promptings and sometimes I say something with no response in return. I am still learning and in the process of learning, there is success and failure. But I want to grow in the habit of responding to the promptings because I believe it is the Holy Spirit helping me along the way.

Do you respond to the proddings in your life? What do you find makes it easiest to respond? What makes it difficult? How can we grow in our trust of the Holy Spirit as he guides us to opportunities to make disciples?