A #Lent26 Bible Study
We kicked off Lent with the observance of Ash Wednesday yesterday. Lent is a season encompassing 40 days and leading up to Easter. It traditionally has its origins in the early Christian church as a time of reflection, fasting, and preparation as we contemplate the life, ministry, teachings, and the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is through His sacrifice that everything changed.
You can read the Scripture for today’s #Lent2026 post here.
The Woman at the Well
(John 4)
As we journey through #LENT26, we slow down long enough to notice our thirst. Not just our physical thirst. But the deeper one. The one we have for answers. The one we sense for our Savior.
The story of The Woman at the Well in the Gospel of John, Chapter 4 is not simply about a conversation at noon in the heat of the day. It is about longing. Shame. Isolation. Worship. Identity. And a Savior who refuses to walk away from the thirsty.
Jesus Goes Where Others Avoid
Jesus travels through Samaria, a route many Jews would have avoided due to the deep cultural hostility that existed between the Jews and the Samaritans. And there, at Jacob’s Well, He meets a Samaritan woman drawing water alone.
Alone.
At noon.
In the heat.
Most likely avoiding the whispers from her fellow townspeople.
Before He says anything spiritual, Jesus does something radical.
He asks her for a drink.
In one sentence, He crosses:
- Ethnic barriers
- Religious hostility
- Gender expectations
- Social stigma
Lent reminds us that God does not go around uncomfortable conversations. He doesn’t avoid them. He walks straight into them.
From Surface Water to Soul Thirst
The conversation begins practically with water.
But Jesus gently shifts it:
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.”
John 4:10 NLT
He is not dismissing her physical need.
He is revealing her deeper one.
The woman misunderstands at first, thinking of wells and buckets. But Jesus is speaking of something internal:
A spring of water welling up to eternal life.
Lent is a season of recognizing that we keep drawing from what never truly satisfies.
Approval.
Achievement.
Noise.
Explanation.
Control.
We keep lowering the bucket.
Eventually, the well runs dry.
Jesus offers something different: a source within that is never empty.
Grace That Names the Truth
Then the conversation turns abruptly and becomes super uncomfortable.
“Go, call your husband.”
Jesus is neither shaming nor accusing her. He simply reveals that He knows her story: five husbands, and the man she is with now is not her husband.
Jesus names what she has likely been judged for her entire life.
And yet, He does not condemn her or dismiss her. Jesus does not walk away.
He stays.
He reveals the pattern of Christ:
Grace first.
Truth next.
Belonging always available.
Friend, Lent is not about self-condemnation. It is about allowing Jesus to lovingly name the places we keep trying to quench our thirst apart from Him. He holds the answer.
From Controversy to Worship
The woman pivots the conversation to theology. Where to worship? On this mountain or in Jerusalem?
It is almost as if she is saying, “Let’s change the subject.”
But Jesus goes even deeper.
Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem.”
John 4:21 NLT
Worship isn’t about location or ritual performance or religious rivalry. It’s about authenticity. Real worship involves honesty, humility, joy and love.
Lent strips away performance. It invites us into worship that is honest, uncluttered, and internal.
Revelation: “I Who Speak to You Am He”
The climax of the story is quiet but seismic.
When she speaks of the coming Messiah, Jesus says:
Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!”
John 4:26 NLT
In the Gospel of John, this is one of the clearest personal revelations of His identity.
And who receives it first?
Not a priest.
Not a scholar.
Not a religious insider.
A Samaritan woman with a complicated past.
Grace does not wait for qualification.
She Leaves Her Jar
One of the most beautiful lines in the entire story:
The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?”
John 4:28-29 NLT
She left her jar, the very reason she came. The woman who came for water left with Living Water.
When we encounter Christ deeply, our old preoccupations lose their urgency.
The woman becomes the evangelist to her own village.
“Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did.”
The woman who once avoided the crowd now runs toward it.
Her shame has turned to testimony.
Her isolation has turned to invitation.
Her thirst has turned to overflow.
The Samaritan Woman’s encounter with Jesus turned her whole world on its head. That’s real transformation!
Lent Reflection for #LENT26
As we walk through Lent this year, let us consider:
- Where are we still drawing from empty wells?
- What truth might Jesus be gently naming in our life?
- What “jar” might we need to leave behind?
- Is our worship rooted in Spirit and Truth or performance and fear?
Jesus still sits beside wells.
He still initiates conversation.
He still offers living water.
And He still reveals Himself to thirsty souls who are willing to stay engaged in the conversation.
A Prayer for Our Journey
Precious Lord,
Meet us at the well. Name what is true in us without shame. Give us living water that satisfies what achievement, noise, and approval never could.
Teach us to worship You in Spirit and in Truth. And when we encounter You,
Help us leave our jar behind. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
If this post stirred something in you, consider sharing it as part of the global #LENT26 collaboration. We are not meant to walk this desert alone.
My blog is a way that I accompany people in their walk with God. This #Lent2026 global blogging collaboration is my invitation for you and I to walk together as we seek to grow deeper in our intimacy with Christ. Please consider joining us on our journey. If you’re interested, you can find more information and some guidelines here.
Here are some #Lent26 posts from my friends and fellow believers.
Lent 2026
#Lent 2026
Lent 2026: Near the Cross
Until my next post…
Be salty, stay lit.
Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™
Please hit me up if you have questions or drop a comment below. And please subscribe to my blog!
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© 2026 Rainer Bantau | The Devotional Guy™ | All Rights Reserved
The Devotional Guy™ 
Yes, that’s so true, Fay. We go back to what we know, even if it’s bad for us or served as a negative experience. We hold on to too much that isn’t useful. Thanks for reading and encouraging me through your kind and thoughtful comments. To God be the glory! Abundant blessings 🙏
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Thank you for your kind words. I’m glad you found my blog through someone in our blogging community. All glory to God! Abundant blessings 🙏
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This really resonated with me, especially the question about which wells we are still drawing from. It’s so easy to keep going back to the same old things for comfort. Grateful for the reminder that Jesus meets us right where we are, even at noon in the heat of the day.
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Praise God I found your blog through another blogger from the UK here at wordpress. Your reflections are so powerful and intense. God bless you more.
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