Jan. 17 - Five Husbands?

Greetings Beloved,

From the account of the woman at the well, in chapter 4 of St. John's Gospel we see Jesus telling the Samaritan woman that His "Living Water" would last forever. She replied almost jokingly, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water" (John 4:15). If only the woman knew how serious He was. Jesus Knew all about her past and as we saw in Day 15's commentary, He revealed her sin by telling her to go and call her husband. The woman replied, "I have no husband" (John 4:16,17).

Jesus then said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband..." (John 4:17,18). Even though Jesus knew her sin, He was still there offering her the "Living Water" that would become in her a spring of water welling up into eternal life.

Now days there are so many broken marriages, both in the Christian and secular world. Of course, no marriage is perfect, husbands and wives offend each other but someone has to say, "I'm sorry," and that's hard. It's easier to walk out than to try and resolve the issues. Nevertheless, forgiveness is essential. Jesus said, "But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses" (Mark 11:26). A responsible relationship to the Lord and towards each other will keep marriages together and other relationships healthy. Are your relationships Christ centered or self-centered?

Pray with me... Almighty, Everlasting Father, we thank You that You are the source of our light, our love and our understanding. We pray that Your love will explode within us and in all of our relationships. Teach us to live without harsh words or unkind actions and keep us mindful that we shall give account of every word that proceeds from our mouths. We pray in the name of our Saviour Jesus Christ. AMEN!

God's blessings to you all,
Fr. Ernest+