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PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Jesus, help me understand when to keep things to myself, and when to sharing news is a good idea! Amen.

Jesus met a Samaritan woman getting water from a well. "Give me a drink," Jesus asked. The woman said, "You're Jewish - your people don't like mine. Why ask me for a drink?" Jesus answered, "I could give you living water." Then He told the woman all about her life, so she believed in Him. She told friends, who followed Jesus, too.

When one of your friends has news, all of you find out about it before long. Then other people hear about it "through the grapevine" - meaning that, like a vine grows longer and longer, people tell other people and news travels.

In a way, this week's Gospel (John 4:5-42) is like news heard through the grapevine. One woman meets Jesus, who is a total stranger to her and anyone she knows. She's never heard of Jesus, so she doesn't believe in Him at first.

When a friend shares news with you, it's hard to resist sharing it with other people yourself - especially when it's exciting or unusual. You want to tell everyone your friend is going to Spain for World Youth Day, or warn them that her grandfather died so people will be nice to her.

The woman Jesus met soon realized that He was someone special. When Jesus, a stranger, told her secret things about her life that He couldn't possibly have known, she started to believe that He came from God.

Her story traveled "over the grapevine," too: She told her friends about Jesus, and they started to believe in Him.

Spreading rumors and gossip that are hurtful to people is never a good idea. But when good news travels through the grapevine - like the news that Jesus is the Son of God - it can bring people closer to God![[In-content Ad]]

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