Beyond the Porch Swing

Session 4 Christine Cain

Any of you who are familiar with Christine Cain, know her ability to speak truth.  She lived up to her reputation! Her message was based out of Genesis 26:1-22.

A famine hits the land.  God directed Isaac to go live in the land ruled by Abimelek, king of the Philistines.  This is the same land God gave Abraham years before when He swore the oath to bless Abraham with descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky ( Genesis 22:17, 26:4).  

Years pass and God continues to bless Isaac.  Abimelek grew jealous of Isaac and kicks him out of his land.  Isaac then settles in the Valley of Gerar where God continued to bless.  Wells were needed for water. Because Abraham had previously occupied this land, old wells already existed but there was a problem.  Years earlier the Philistines hated how God bless Abraham so they filled all his wells with dirt. Now, before Isaac could use the wells he had to dig out the dirt.  When the Philistines saw Isaac getting fresh water from the old wells they raised a stink. They claimed the wells belonged to them and Isaac, in order to maintain peace, was forced to find another well, dig it out and use.

The wells are an analogy of our lives.  We come to know salvation through Jesus.  Time passes and our beginning enthusiasm begins to waver.  We start compromising. Slowly our “well of fresh water” from Jesus is clogged up.  We say we want a vibrant relationship with God but our sin binds us. The only way we can experience fresh water again is to dig out the dirt. 

Questions:

How’s my well?

What dirt/sin is clogging my well?

What specific action can I take to help me remove that sin?