What's Holding Us Back?

Joe, the guy who works at the gas station.

Martha, the woman who works at the grocery store.

Tim, the guy in the cubicle next to you.

Cynthia, the woman who delivers your mail.

John, the guy serving you your double latte, frappe, lowfat skim milk, double espresso americana drink every morning. (or for the rest of us just black coffee)

What is it that may be common among these people? Are they thirsting for something?

This past Suday, Matt delivered a sermon that drove right to my core. He talked about reaching out to people, and bringing them into the Church. His example was the doughnut shop employee, and giving just a simple invite. I'm just as guilty as the next person, for not seizing an opportunity when the Lord presents it. To reach out to someone that may be thirsty for something.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus left the area known as Judea to go to Galilee. Along his way he stopped at a well, Jacob's well. While there a Samaritan woman came along and Jesus asked her for a drink from the well. After some discussion, Jesus explained that He could provide her Living Water, that "whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life". (John 4: 13-14) Moving further along, we see that Jesus pronounces Himself as the Messiah to the woman. (John 4: 25-46).

You may be asking yourselves "what does this have to do with reaching out to people"? Let's take a closer look at who this woman was, and where she was from. This woman was a Samaritan. When we read chapter four of John we find that the Jewish community, which is were Jesus was from, regarded the Samaritans as second class, as being unclean. According to study notes, the Jews even went as far as to avoid any Samaritan area when traveling. Jesus, obviously, was different. He knew where he was traveling to, and he knew the thoughts of His people towards the Samaritans. He went there anyways and REACHED OUT, to this woman. As we read further into John we find that in this simple act of reaching out to this woman, she went back to her people and many were saved when Jesus reached out to them. Samaritans, the unworthy, the unfit, the unclean people who were disregarded in their time.

So I'll ask again, what's holding us back? We obviously don't go out of our way to avoid the gas station. We don't think of the grocery store worker as unclean. We don't refuse our mail because of who delivered it. We don't disregard ideas from the person in the next cubicle because we think they're second class. We definitely don't refuse our double latte, frappe, lowfat skin milk, double espresso americana (black coffee) drink every morning. So what is it? What is holding us back from reaching out to these or any other person we come into contact with? What stops us from following the example set by our Lord and Savior? What is stopping us from giving just a simple invite to Church?

In closing, I'll just say again that I'm as guilty as the next person for not doing these things. For not reaching out. Maybe its fear of rejection, maybe its selfishness with my time, I don't know what it is. Starting now though, lets all challenge ourselves to reach out. Lets give that simple invite. Lets all start showing people where they can find that water which they have been thirsting for. A water which never runs out, a water that always quenches a thirst.

Dustin Smoot