Nobody is an Outcast.

John 4:28-30
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?" 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

This is an end to an inspiring story that begins earlier in John 4 about the woman at the well. This woman was a Samaritan, a mixed group, in which the Israelites hated. To make matters worse, she had five husbands and was living with another man other than one of her husbands. Everyone criticized her and considered her to be a disgrace. Nevertheless, Jesus still reached out his mighty hand and talked to her.

When I read this story in the Bible over and over again I think of Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, which I read last year in my english class. Hester was publicly humiliated in her Puritan-based society because she had a child out of wedlock and was an adulterer. She had the scarlet letter "A" embroidered on her bosom. The townspeople failed to see her in a positive light.

Anyways, back to the Bible. What did Christ tell her? No matter how much she was shunned from society, she would never be abandoned by God or his friendly kingdom. You can imagine the awestruck feeling the woman must have felt. How would you feel if everyone saw you as an outcast until Jesus told you otherwise? His words must of brightened her day!

This woman was so excited that she had such an intimate relationship with Christ. Her life was so much better knowing this truth. Wouldn't you want to run and tell everyone? Since Jesus had made such a profound impact on her life, they all surrendered to Jesus.

Let the story of this woman be reflected in your relationship with Christ. May it also be noticeable to others without effort and without trying to impress others. Are you even willing to tell others about your experience? If not, there is room to grow. Pray a little and read the Bible a little. You will be amazed at how much of an effect it can have on your life.

Here's to a nice song from Chris and Conrad: "You're The One" (sorry no lyrics).



P.S. If you have trouble with the video stopping and starting, keep the video paused, and let it "buffer" (load) as it's called for a while. You will see the red bar along the bottom advance (speed depends on your Internet connection). Wait until that bar gets pretty far along (I'd say more than halfway) before you play the video and it shouldn't pause.