PRICELESS LIVING WATER

Time with Jesus - 5 Sept. 2013

Hi All,

In 1957, one of our English “Set books” was King Solomon’s Mines. The book was first published in September 1885 amid considerable fanfare, with billboards and posters around London announcing "The Most Amazing Book Ever Written". 

It became an immediate best seller. H Rider Haggard wrote the novel as a result of a five-shilling wager with his brother, namely whether he could write a novel half as good as Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. The book was a novelty. When, published, it became the year's best seller; (Courtesy Google)

The book was a “hit” with the Standard 8 schoolboys. It had all the ingredients needed to capture the imagination of youngsters in school. Some of us were familiar with “Allan Quatermain”. He had featured in other Rider Haggard books. It included intrigue, treachery, some knowledge of African history and geography, hardship, thirst, “magic tricks”, a total eclipse of the sun, a male / female love affair and the restoration of a throne to its rightful owner.

Carrying Water in the Desert

In the early chapters of the book, the party crosses the desert on the way to “Kukuanaland”, located behind two mountains known as Sheba’s Left and Right Breasts.

The image of the terrible thirst the party experienced crossing the desert, trying to locate an oasis shown on a map which may or may not have been reliable, is vivid. From there across the mountains to the Kraal of Twala the ruthless king and on to their ultimate victory and restoration of the royal throne to Ignosi was the “stuff” to catch the imagination of 15 year old boys!

Although South Africa does not have a plentiful water supply, the people have succeeded in living in our somewhat arid conditions. Dams and water conservation measures have so far succeeded in satisfying the thirst of our people. However, on many occasions, water has been a scarce commodity.

A Modern Fountain

In Biblical times, the only way to obtain water, away from rivers, was by digging wells. The book of Genesis refers to wells on 29 occasions. A well was a pit or hole sunk into the earth to provide water. Many different types of wells are mentioned in the Bible. These include a cistern dug in the ground; a spring; a fountain, also called a living spring; and a pit or hole. All the Patriarchs obtained well water for personal and animal consumption at some time in their journey through life.

Things were not grossly different in the days of Jesus. Usually, women transported water from the well to their home or tent. Young girls learned how to carry water pitchers on their heads much the same way as African women learn to carry vessels on their heads. It’s an acquired skill which they master while comparatively young.

It would not be unusual for a number of women to set off to the well, collect the water and return home in a group. Nevertheless it was hot, tiring work which may have had to be repeated more than once per day, depending on circumstances. 

Travelling together in a group would be safer and they could help each other when water was being drawn up from a well. Those who were regarded perhaps as “unsavoury”, such as girls of bad reputation and prostitutes, would generally travel in the middle of the day. This way they could keep to themselves

The story of Jesus and the woman at the well in John 4, introduces us to the Jesus who has a high regard for women, regardless of the opinions of others. Here at Sychar, the woman, a “hated Samaritan” arrived at the place known as “Jacob’s well”. There she had an encounter with Jesus which changed her life forever. 

Basically, Jesus was thirsty and asked her to give Him a drink. A dialog then developed between the two of them. She could only provide Him with water from the well. He offered her “living water”; water from the Holy Spirit. When the conversation concluded, she established she was talking to the Messiah. So convinced was she, she became the world’s first evangelist for Jesus!

Today’s meditation consists of 5 poems. The first three are different. The final two are in the same style. It’s an attempt to give variety within the poetry section.

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 5 Sept. 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	PRICELESS LIVING WATER
Dad used to say “A change is as good as a holiday”. So here’s a change for me. Four different writing styles. Hopefully you will find the content helpful and perhaps I can have a holiday? The Jimmet originated from Jeremiah’s comments by the Lord concerning the things His people had done. In Jeremiah 2, The Lord was speaking to the prophet about His people. He was commenting on the fact that His people had abandoned Him and pursued other gods, which were not gods at all. They were images the people had dreamed up. This portion of Scripture came from the period before the Babylonians invaded Judah and Jerusalem and carried off His people to Babylon. Actually, the Babylonians attacked on three separate occasions with ±10 years between each invasion. The first time was in ±606BC. Jeremiah’s ministry began in ±627BC. It follows that these words recorded by Jeremiah must have been in ±620BC. The Jimmet focuses on the words of God through Jeremiah. It is a brief summary of those times and reflects something of God’s attitude to the people’s unfaithfulness in “chasing after” foreign gods and idols. This is followed by an interpolation of Psalm 37 7-9. This, my “standard” poetry style, contrasts with the Jimmet and focuses on the goodness of God. Our total dependence on and need for God includes references to Paul’s words to the Athenians in Acts. 28 For in Him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, 'We are His offspring.' Acts 17:28 NLT In this portion of our meditation I’ve tried to show the need for our utter dependence on Him. Jesus’ words to the woman at the well are referred to in the next few lines of verse. The astonishing dialog between Jesus and this woman! In those days, Jews didn’t speak to Samaritans. For a Jewish Rabbi to speak to a Samaritan woman of questionable morals at that time was unthinkable. But this was the Lord Jesus. This dialog in John 4 must have done more to elevate the status of women in those days and subsequently, than we will ever appreciate in the 21st century. Jesus showed the men the way in this regard. In His own unique way Jesus led the way to the liberation of women that few people realise. The final two poems are in a very simple four/four style. The first refers to words written by Isaiah. They are God’s invitation to the thirsty to come and drink from His abundant supply. Notice that no cost would be involved. It sounds like an evangelical 21st century appeal! The final short verse is taken from the end of the book of Revelation. It seems to reflect the words of Isaiah! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			13 "For My people have done two evil things: They have abandoned Me--the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all! Jeremiah 2:13 NLT	1 - Jimmet -  Jeremiah 2:13 NLT My people have just done two evil things.                           The first is that they have abandoned Me. The only One who living water brings; Dug their cisterns which are water free! Cracked and empty, they’re dry as bones. Not a trace of moisture anywhere! Why is it they leave their God alone, When I Am the only One who cares? Sadly this is how it’s always been, Searching for a god when there is none. Images to look at and be seen. But the fact is, I’m the only One! They prefer the idols of their mind. And reject the One who’s good and kind. 2 -  Psalms 36:7-9 TNIV How priceless Your unfailing love. O Lord in Thee we hide.      In the shadow of Your wings is where we all abide. Feast on the abundance, which only You supply. From delightful rivers, we drink and are not dry. Lord You have provided this. You are the source of light. The fount of living water You give us day and night. Without You there is nothing. Not one of us could be. You are our existence. We live and move in Thee. You feed us when we’re hungry. Warm us when we’re cold. Give us all we’ll ever need. Our silver and our gold, Is what You provided back when You shaped the land. So that we could find it as from Your mighty hand. 3 - John 4:14 GW       Water from a reservoir a man must drink to live;            In order that his thirst, he can contain; Whoso drinks the water that I, alone, can give,          He will never ever thirst again! That which I provide is like a flowing, bubbling spring,          Gushing up and flowing from inside. Streams of Living Water will flow from deep within,          And everlasting life will thus abide!" 4 - Isaiah 55:1 NLT It won’t cost you anything        Not the water which I bring.       Wine and Milk I give for free,      . If you’ll come and follow Me!      5 - Revelation 22:17 NLT The Spirit and the Bride say come.                      To your thirst, do not succumb. Anyone who’s parched and dry Come! Drink freely! I’ll supply! Jim Strickland Written 5th Sept. 2012
			7 How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. 8 They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. 9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Psalms 36:7-9 TNIV
			13 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, my servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; behold, my servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; behold, my servants shall rejoice, but you shall be put to shame; Isaiah 65:13 ESV
			14 But those who drink the water that I will give them will never become thirsty again. In fact, the water I will give them will become in them a spring that gushes up to eternal life." John 4:14 GW
			39 (He said this in regard to the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were about to receive. The Spirit had not yet been given because Jesus had not yet been glorified.) John 7:39 MSG
			1 "Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink--even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk--it's all free! Isaiah 55:1 NLT
			17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come." Let anyone who hears this say, "Come." Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life. Revelation 22:17 NLT

THE LORD’S DISCIPLINE

Time with Jesus - 4 Sept 2013

Hi All,

School discipline was strictly enforced back in the 1950’s. If you did something wrong, you knew all about it. You had a stripe on your “sit upon” for a day or two. A reminder of what would happen again if the action was repeated!

In Standard 7 (Grade 9) when I started in Walmer, I was a little behind in mathematics. As a result, my behind suffered. Our mathematics teacher was our School Principal. Among other things, he insisted we knew our geometry theorems. So he would set a couple of them for homework. We knew what was expected. The next morning he would start at the front row. He would ask each scholar to step up to the blackboard (In our case it was green). There the scholar was asked to prove the theorem. If you couldn’t do so, he told you to stand aside at the front. 

Then he would start with the next scholar. Slowly he would go, one at a time, through the entire class until everyone had a chance to finish proving the theorem and write QED next to what we had done. I was told it meant “quad, erat, demonstrandum”. Since I didn’t “do” Latin, I thought it meant “quite easily done”. Then, when my turn came and I managed to work through the theorem, my QED was written with something of a flourish. Even good old Pythagoras with his “squaw on the hippopotamus” was provable!

Those who couldn’t prove the theorem gathered together at the front. When we had all had a go, most of us were standing at the front. Then, mysteriously, from underneath his “brother’s habit”, he produced his cane. He then gave each of those who failed to prove the theorem a “master stroke” on their rear ends. It was a sort of memory-jogger for the next day! 

The Squaw on the Hipopotamus

He would mutter and splutter through the time of discipline, at the same time suggesting that we would have another “go” the following day. Did he enjoy administering discipline? We couldn’t quite work it out. He remained his usual congenial self at all times. Mind you, It never ceased to amaze me how quickly we all learned our theorems!

One of the facts we soon came to realise with Bro. Leonard was his consistency. There were very clear demarcation lines in his approach to us. Those who did what he had told them to do had no problems with him. Those who didn’t, suffered from the consequences of their stupidity. He was very approachable in spite of his apparent gruff manner. He was always patient and would listen to our “excuses”, then he would act according to what he thought was right. 

Some of the Brothers

I’ve mentioned it before but it’s worth repeating. He was a Roman Catholic who had become a member of Marist Brothers Teaching Order. In this capacity, he was highly qualified. I suspect he was a University graduate. Certainly these Brothers were very clever men. What they had done was devote themselves entirely to serving God and teaching schoolboys. From my point of view, it was and is a high calling! This was not merely a monastic, inward-looking exclusivity. The dedication of these men to God was never in question. They spent many hours in devotion and prayer. But this was not the limit of their commitment to God. They reached out to provide education for schoolboys. I shall be eternally grateful for their example and dedication in shaping the lives of young boys.

School Badge of
Marist Brothers Port Elizabeth

I attended Marist Brothers schools for 6 of my 12 years formal education. I was and still am a protestant. Naturally, many of my classmates were Roman Catholics. What surprised me was that the schools were open to youngsters from any religious background. In this regard they had a very ecumenical approach! No pressure was placed on anyone to join the RC church. 

The first lesson every day was Religious Instruction. The RC boys would assemble in one of the classrooms. The Protestants would assemble in a different classroom. We Protestants were given Bible lessons. Adam and Eve; the fall of man; Cain and Abel; Noah; Abraham and the Patriarchs; Moses and the Exodus; Gideon; Samson and the Kings. Then we moved on to the New Testament where we focussed on the birth, life and death of Jesus; the birth of the early church including Paul’s 3 missionary journeys. There’s no question my love of the Bible originated during those six years of “daily instruction” in school by the Marist Brothers.

In a way, the Brothers did much more than give Protestants a good grounding in the Bible. I suspect they also taught me to fear God! These men befriended the boys in a very special way. There was nothing questionable about their relationship with us individually or collectively. In all my six years with them, there was never any scandal or suggestion that the Brothers behaved improperly with any of the boys. Of course I can only speak for those in my class in my years. 

The Brothers did befriend us as best they could. We enjoyed this camaraderie. We loved it when they joined us on the sports field. When they dressed in the same “kit” and played rugby and cricket with us we thought it was great fun. Yet, at the same time, we always respected them. The relationship was more a father and son relationship. 

Because this was outside our own home life, it gave us an idea of how it should be between our Heavenly Father and ourselves. It was a valuable lesson for which I will always thank Jesus!

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 04 September 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	THE LORD’S DISCIPLINE
A couple of weeks ago I heard a rather funny story by a certain lady. She was dealing with her son. When asked about his will power, she said she wasn’t worried about his “will” power. It’s his “won’t” power that has her bothered. Phyllida and I have had some experience with this. Two of our sons lived with us in 1982. They were in the final year of Primary School and were sharing a room in our home. The boys were very different from each other. I’m not talking about being naughty. They were much the same as any youngster of their age. The difference was in their response to being asked to do something. The one would say he would do it, then didn’t. The other said he wouldn’t and a little later he did! This sort of behaviour is difficult to deal with! How do you discipline a son who says he will, then doesn’t? What about a son who says he won’t and then does? I know Jesus speaks about such a situation. It’s found in Matthew’s gospel. 28 "But what do you think about this (asked Jesus)? A man with two sons told the older boy, 'Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.' 29 The son answered, 'No, I won't go,' but later he changed his mind and went anyway. 30 Then the father told the other son, 'You go,' and he said, 'Yes, sir, I will.' But he didn't go. Matthew 21:28-30 NLT It’s clear only one of them obeyed his father’s will. The other needed to be disciplined. How? We had to filter this through our own understanding. God doesn’t need that. He already knows. We know that Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees. They said they would obey the Lord but didn’t. On the other hand, “sinners” said they wouldn’t (couldn’t?) and did. In many ways, this is typical of things which take place in our lives. Either way, our Heavenly Father will deal with us. We understand that delayed obedience is disobedience. So both required a measure of discipline. But the one who said “No” and did, will be dealt with less severely than the one who said “Yes” and didn’t. One of our main difficulties is we don’t have much time to waste. Our life-span is very short. Furthermore, in this interlude, we have to make choices that have eternal consequences. It follows that we need the Lord’s discipline here and now. We need Him to tell us if we are doing well or badly! We need His discipline to establish this conclusively. I’ve heard of a young man who was allowed to “run wild”. He was undisciplined. His anti-social behaviour ultimately landed him in prison. But if he had been disciplined as a child, the chances are that he would have been O.K. The discipline would have been in the child’s best interests. Is the Lord disciplining you? Rejoice if He is! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			7 Jesus answered, "You don't understand now what I'm doing, but it will be clear enough to you later." John 13:7 MSG	None of us can comprehend the things the Lord does do. One moment everything is well. The next He’s telling you, That something you are doing is somewhat incorrect. Better have another look in order to detect, The reason for the problem. He is not amused. And as He’s looking at you, He says you are accused, Of something inconsistent with what is in His Word. Don’t you think the time has come to check out what you’ve heard? No it isn’t pleasant. In fact at times it’s tough. But He’ll increase the pressure until you cry “Enough! O Master, please forgive me, and help me get things right; So that my bad behaviour will end as from last night!” That’s typical behaviour between father and a son. He’d quickly show the problem with the things which I had done, And if it was quite serious, my dad would use his rod. That’s rather like that happens when it comes to you and God. He disciplines His children. His dealings may be sore. But He wants an assurance you won’t do it anymore. In fact, He steps up pressure, the longer that it takes. Until He sees you listening and decision to forsake, The thing He disapproves of. He starts with just a word; And ratchets up the pressure, ‘til He sees that you have heard. I’m glad the Father does this. If we are just ignored, Perhaps there’s something serious, between you and the Lord. We know the Father loves us when discipline takes place. If He doesn’t do so, you’re truly in disgrace. The one way we can know that we are objects of His love, Is when we know that discipline is coming from above. It happened in the Wilderness. The Lord said, “Go on in! Take the land I’ve given you, so go in now and win.” Instead they sent twelve spies out to investigate the land. Ten said we can’t do it the way the Lord has planned. The people were depressed about their negative report. Then God said their reactions meant they were getting naught. ‘Wander round the wilderness for almost forty years”. And that is just what happened, in spite of all their tears. So let us pay attention, to what the Father says. He will do the same to us, unless we change our ways. Do what we’re commanded, as soon as He has said. Or perish in the wilderness, left behind as dead. Jim Strickland Written 4th Sept 2012
			2 Remember that for 40 years the LORD your God led you on your journey in the desert. He did this in order to humble you and test you. He wanted to know whether or not you would wholeheartedly obey his commands. Deuteronomy 8:2 GW
			8 And when I passed by again, I saw that you were old enough for love. So I wrapped My cloak around you to cover your nakedness and declared My marriage vows. I made a covenant with you, says the Sovereign LORD, and you became Mine. Ezekiel 16:8 NLT
			6 For the LORD disciplines those He loves, and He punishes each one He accepts as His child." Hebrews 12:6 NLT
			11 My child, don't reject the LORD's discipline, and don't be upset when He corrects you. 12 For the LORD corrects those He loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights. Proverbs 3:11-12 NLT
			12 Dear friends, don't be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. 13 Instead, be very glad--for these trials make you partners with Christ in His suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing His glory when it is revealed to all the world. 1 Peter 4:12-13 NLT
			17 For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT