Who can find a virtuous woman? Her price is far above rubies.
My Mother, Mary Hocker

Jacob’s Well Was There

This morning I am writing from my motel room in Eaton, Ohio. It is about 6:00 a.m. and the motel doesn’t have an internet connection, so I’ll post this article later today or in Friday morning before work. Later this morning we’ll be gathering at Dad’s church in Camden for fun and fellowship. Then this afternoon we will have our Hocker Family Christmas Celebration. All of my brothers made it in last night. Three of us and our families are staying here at the Econo Lodge.

Our family has grown so much. Now six of Mom and Dad’s grandchildren are married. If everyone made it there would be thirty eight of us. Since we are spread out from Ohio south to Georgia, east to Virginia, and all the way to Africa when you consider Ryan and Emily, there is a lot of travel involved when our family gets together. Between scheduling and traveling the likelihood of getting everyone coming it is less likely each year.

My thoughts this morning have brought me to the travels of Jesus. In the fourth chapter of John we find Him traveling through Samaria.

He had to go through Samaria on the way. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. John 4:4-6 NLT

There is so much in this passage, but I want focus on one thought, “Jacob’s well was there.” Even though Jacob himself had been gone for generations, his presence was still felt. Jacob had lived his life in such a way that he left a legacy that continued to be felt long after his time had passed.

As I walked through the church in Camden last night, I had strong sense of Mother’s legacy. It wasn’t just the little memorial on the wall in the hallway either. I felt as though she could come walking around the corner just any moment, even though this January it will be three years. You see, like Jacob, my mother dug a well. She didn’t idle her time away while she was here. She invested herself and her energy in others, and in the life of her church.

Now when Mother was here, her presence could be felt. She really made things happen. She always took care of the when, the where, the what, and the how. You never had to worry about the details. Perhaps she worked too hard and worried too much, but that was Mother. The truth is that I really, really, REALLY, miss her this morning more than I could possibly communicate in space of this message, but I am glad for that feeling. I am glad that her life was meaningful enough to make such a profound difference. I am glad she dug such a deep well in our hearts, that her presence can still be felt. Even more, I am so thankful for the legacy of faith that she left in our family.

The most exciting thing about the well that Jacob dug was that it became a springboard for revival. When the Samaritan woman went back to town she went with more than just water from the old well. There she encountered the Living Water! After she offered to draw water for Jesus, He offered her something of much greater value!

Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”

“But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?”

Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

“Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” John 4:10-15 NLT

Today, as we celebrate Christmas with Dad and my brothers and our families, we will be doing so because Mother dug a well. As Jacob’s well was a gathering point for the families of this Samaritan village, Mother’s well is a gathering point for our family and those whose life she touched through her ministry. It is a well of love and faithfulness that continues to refresh us as a family.

It is my hope today, that I may dig a well and leave a legacy that will be a blessing to my family. Have a blessed day!