13Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.”

16Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” 19The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”  John 4:13-20

To worship in truth is to enter into the truth about God and ourselves. The Samaritan woman likely came for water at Jacob’s well in the heat of the day because too many people in the village knew her story. Surely it was uncomfortable always being treated as an outsider by her own people.  Now this strange man knows the truth about her too.

It was uncomfortable. It was awkward.

Authentic worship before the living, seeing, God will have its moments of discomfort. Conviction of sin and the reality of our brokenness flowing from our independence from God provokes the ancient patters of hiding. So she changes the subject… anything to get the piercing eye of truth off of her. Ironically, she changes the topic to worship.

Just like us.

Watch for it. We can create a little space or we can totally avoid God by raising a debatable matter when the truth is out. But, unless we let the Spirit of God pierce our shiny self-justifying armour we will not enter into the depths of Jesus’ liberating Gospel: “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The discomfort could be the precursor to His joy in your heart.