I’ve always been intrigued with the statement in John 4 stating that Jesus “had to pass through Samaria.” The word expresses the idea of necessity — almost as if He didn’t have any other option — even though He certainly did have other options. The Jewish people would often make a point of not passing through Samaria. Yet John states that Jesus had to.

Since we have the luxury of knowing the whole story, we understand why He was compelled to take that route. There was a Samaritan woman at the well who was destined to have an encounter with God that day. And Jesus, who was ever-sensitive to the voice of His Father, just knew that He needed to be there. Did He know about the woman prior to His arrival? We might imagine that as God, He had that prerogative. Yet as Man, He limited the exercise of His divine attributes. We don’t know whether or not He knew in advance whom He would be meeting that day. But we know that He saw every circumstance as an opportunity to bring God’s love to life.

How about us? Do we see the mundane affairs of life as potential “divine appointments” that God would have us keep? Does our lawn-mower quit working on Saturday morning simply because things wear out? Or could God have a deeper purpose for allowing that inconvenience? Though I’m not suggesting that we go through life trying to discover hidden meaning in everything that happens to us, I am suggesting that we need to keep our eyes and ears open. That’s exactly what Tonya was doing in “What Does This Bank Teller Value More Than Money?”

Speaking of Jesus’ divine mission, the apostle Paul writes that “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself … and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation”
(2 Corinthians 5:19). We are called to continue what Jesus began. Jesus’ life and mission was too important to treat a single moment as if it were purely mundane — without purpose. As the heirs of His life and mission, the same is true for us. Let us then, live life on purpose.