Real Water

I am working on a sketch of a homeless child who has been given a glass of water. Her eyes haunt me. Yes, the water is good and necessary and satisfies initially. But that ache in her soul for connection, love and acceptance, for a home indoors and a loving family are much harder to satisfy. I'm sure she wants to be fully known and fully loved and accepted in a safe place.

Makes me think of the woman at the well chatting with Jesus. She was not part of the in crowd, the acceptable folks. She was leading a complicated life fraught with wrongdoing. Jesus seemed to know her really well and called her on all her stuff. Yes, she was trying to find love, acceptance and security in all the wrong places.

Many marriages.  Living with her current lover. Still she is empty with a longing for being fully known and fully loved; she wants connection with Jesus based on truth, of all things. Jesus reaches out to her with love, acceptance, forgiveness and  "living water". This is His truth for her. What's living water?

Jesus said to her at the well, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” John 4:13-14, NLT I think water is being used as a metaphor for life. Just as H2O is life-giving for our physical bodies, Jesus is life-giving for our spiritual bodies.

I offer a sketch of a little girl begun tonight, and I offer the truth that Jesus is our "living water" for our souls. He fully knows us and, while calling us on our stuff, fully loves us.