Gems From The Well

By Shirley Fruchey

In these strange–challenging–times, we need a reminder of where our hope is found…So come to The Well.

In this world that we’re living in today, women need gems. It is not the kind that sparkle and dazzle (although those may be lovely to look at) but the kind that comes from God’s Word. His well of Truth that is deep and endless.

At this very moment in time, it is especially important that we, as women, begin each day with the reinforcement of how God sees us and why we can be confident that we are true “Women of Worth” to our Creator.

When we fill our bucket daily from His well of truth, we will find that God’s Word is filled with examples of His value of women. We will see “gems” in God’s word, where he says to each of us, “beloved…you are a daughter of great worth.”

Certainly, we see a glimpse of it in Proverbs 31 (verses 10 and 11), where we are told that a “woman of noble character is worth far more than rubies.” Rubies have been viewed throughout history among the most precious of gems.

Proverbs 31 is the example of the kind of woman we were all meant to reflect. But some of us just haven’t felt like we were quite “that girl.” Maybe something in our life took us down the wrong path. Maybe hurt and disappointment led us to a painful and lonely journey. Maybe nothing really went wrong, but we just didn’t feel that we could really ever “measure up.”

Now, let’s take a look at another woman in the Bible. Let’s look at the Gospel of John 4:4 thru 42. In these verses, we meet a woman who wouldn’t exactly be called a “Proverbs 31 Winner.”

But as we read and get to know her, by the world’s standards today…she really wasn’t all that bad! She wasn’t a thief. She wasn’t a murderer! But she was FAR from the best that she could have been and certainly was NOT the best that God wanted her to be! You see, she was jumping from person to person, situation to situation yearning to have that thirst for “something more” quenched.

So, when she met Jesus, the Jew, she fully expected to be shunned by him. After all, he was a Jew, and she was a Samaritan woman. They did not associate. On top of that, she knew that she was considered one of “those girls.” The kind that even other Samaritan women did NOT associate with. But, as we read in verses 17 and 18, Jesus already knew about her less than perfect life. And, when asked by Jesus…she didn’t exactly lie about her life.

She told him the truth about her situation. The only way she could and still retain a small shred of her already worn thin self-respect. Now, let’s be honest…how many times have we come to our Savior in prayer, telling him just the “bare essentials” of our trials, to try and hold on to our crumbling self-respect? But Jesus already knew the details of this woman’s life…

…and He already knows ours!

We never need to try to hide whatever truth in our lives keeps us from being the very best that He wants us to be…because He already knows.

Then, Jesus did something amazing. He brought the facts of her life out into the open, where the real healing begins. He didn’t persecute or shame her. He just stated the circumstances of her life. And she was stunned and thrilled when Jesus told her that He was the Christ (Verse 26). So much so, that in one split second, Jesus takes her from WOW (Woman of the Well) to…WOW! (Woman of Worth!) And this was NOT because of anything that SHE did, but because of everything, HE did!

As we read in verse 39, “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony, “‘He told me everything I ever did…'”

So, in our lives, each of us has to be able to honestly say, at some point, we’ve been “Women of the Well.” And we have been searching and thirsting for that living water only Jesus can bring to us.

Our testimonies may not involve the same struggles and trials of this woman. But, maybe they do. The point is we all have something!

However, we are told we are of value to the Father. And in fact, our girlfriend in the Bible–the Woman of the Well–was so valuable in God’s Eyes, he used her testimony to bring Christ’s salvation to “many of the Samaritans from that town!”

She went from Woman of the Well…to Woman of Worth. And we can too. We are all great “Women of Worth” when we know and have a sincere and prayerful relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ!

See you at The Well!

Shirley can be reached at sfruchey@yahoo.com