Please note that the content and viewpoints of Mr. Hansen are his own and are not necessarily those of the C.S. Lewis Foundation. We have not edited his writing in any substantial way and have permission from him to post his content.
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Dear Friends:
A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her , ‘Give me a drink.’(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food). (Jn 4:7-8).
She slips out the door into blinding light.
It’s noon in a high desert town. Buildings and streets flicker and blur in radiated light. Nothing else moves. Dogs are too engrossed in their panting to bark.
Hot rocks and sand beneath her sandals bring the soles of her feet to a slow broil. The relentless sunshine glints off the glaze of the water jar under her arm and magnifies its heat on her face.
There is no shade at mid-day. One either stays inside or moves quickly out to a task and back inside.
She prefers this time to get the water. The other women do this chore before the day is an hour old. She wakes late to their banter and lies still to wait for the sound to drop to murmurs as they pass her house. It’s a grim game she plays with herself each morning, knowing they are talking about her, imagining the insults. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Christianity, Devotional, Kent Hansen, word of Grace
Please note that the content and viewpoints of Mr. Hansen are his own and are not necessarily those of the C.S. Lewis Foundation. We have not edited his writing in any substantial way and have permission from him to post his content.
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Dear Friends:
Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon (Jn 4:6).
It is noon, the hottest part of the day. It is the time that early Christians believed carried the particular temptation of acedia, the noonday demon–a physical lassitude, mental boredom and apathy that lulls one into dropping his or her spiritual guard and giving way to the desires of the flesh. Those of us who spend the day peering into monitors and hunched over desks can relate.
I don’t know about you, but it gives me great comfort to know that my Savior knows the exertion, the weariness, the heat and the sweat that marks the human struggle in this world and tempts us to quit or settle for the cheap and the easy. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb 4:15-16).
The danger of the test is rarely in the big crisis, in the clear-cut choice between good and evil. Rather, it is in the banal and the dreary that flesh finds the need for indulgent action irresistible.
It is hot. Jesus is tired. The well was dug by his ancestor Jacob for his household and flocks. It is right there with cold, sweet water, but Jesus has no vessel and rope with which to reach it. What to do? Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Christianity, Devotional, Kent Hansen, word of Grace
Please note that the content and viewpoints of Mr. Hansen are his own and are not necessarily those of the C.S. Lewis Foundation. We have not edited his writing in any substantial way and have permission from him to post his content.
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Dear Friends:
It was a sunny morning in my eighth grade year when I first heard the song, “Fill My Cup, Lord.” A visiting soloist sang it for special music for the worship service in the little church that my family attended in Soquel, California. He was a friend of my parents and had a nice tenor voice, but I must confess that I didn’t like the song very much.
There is no arguing with the direct and simple message of the song which is an appeal for the Lord to quench spiritual hunger and thirst with the life of Christ ministered by the Holy Spirit. Here is a link to the words: http://www.gospelsonglyrics.org/songs/fill_my_cup_lord.html.
Part of my dislike is that the song was overused, but it was rarely sung well in my hearing. The melody has a dramatic flair that turns sappy and maudlin in the overwrought treatment of singers who believe that the higher the volume and the bigger the vibrato, the closer they and their listeners are to God. “Fill My Cup, Lord” can end up sounding like something out of a bad amateur production of the musical, “Carousel.” A notable exception is the fine version sung by CeCe Winans.
The song was successful in getting me to think about Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well in the City of Sychar. The story is described in detail by the Apostle John in the fourth chapter of his Gospel. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Christianity, Devotional, Kent Hansen, word of Grace
