Another Name In The Crowd - Edition 25
Faith Forward (Weekly Newsletter)
Have you ever felt like just another face in the crowd? Another person going through the motions? You show up on Sunday morning, sing the songs, hear the sermon, say “amen” in the right places, but something feels... distant. Impersonal. Like you’re checking boxes instead of connecting with God. Instead of connecting with community.
If that’s you, I want you to know something: God doesn’t see you as another name in the crowd. He never has.
The Woman Who Came at Noon
There’s a story in John 4 about a woman who definitely felt like another name in the crowd or worse, a name people whispered about when she walked by.
She was a Samaritan woman with a complicated past. Five marriages. Living with a man who wasn’t her husband. In her culture, that meant shame. Isolation. Being talked about but never truly seen.
So she did what any of us would do when we feel like that: she avoided people. She went to the well at noon, in the scorching heat, when she knew no one else would be there. It was easier to be alone than to feel invisible in a crowd.
But then she met Jesus.
When God Gets Personal
Here’s what gets me about this encounter: Jesus didn’t have to be there. Jews didn’t associate with Samaritans. Men didn’t speak to women alone in public. And religious leaders certainly didn’t engage with women who had her reputation.
But Jesus broke every social rule to have a personal conversation with her.
He asked her for water. He talked to her about her life, not to shame her, but to see her. He knew everything about her past, and instead of condemning her, He offered her living water. He told her truths about worship that He hadn’t even shared with the religious elite.
This wasn’t a sermon to the masses. This wasn’t a distant, impersonal interaction. This was Jesus saying, “I see you. I know you. And I came here specifically for you.”
The Question We Need to Ask
So here’s what I’ve been thinking about: Is my relationship with God personal, or is it just predictable?
Do I know God, or do I just know about God?
Am I in a relationship with Him, or am I just going through the motions?
Because there’s a massive difference between the two. Knowing about God means you can read and recite Scripture, attend church, maybe even serve on a team. But knowing God? That’s personal. That’s intimate. That’s the kind of relationship where He speaks into your life, where you bring Him your mess, where you experience His presence in real, tangible ways.
The woman at the well didn’t just learn about Jesus that day. She encountered Him. And it changed everything.
What God Really Wants
God doesn’t want another name in the crowd. He doesn’t want your Sunday morning attendance if your heart is somewhere else. He doesn’t want you to go through the motions while feeling distant and disconnected.
What does He want? He wants you.
Not a polished version of you. Not a “got-it-all-together” version. He wants the real you, the messy, complicated, struggling, searching you. He wants a relationship, not a religious routine.
Think about it. Jesus went out of His way, breaking cultural norms, to sit at a well and have a personal conversation with a woman who felt invisible. If He did that for her, what makes you think He won’t do it for you?
Reflection Questions
1. If you’re honest with yourself, is your relationship with God personal and intimate, or has it become predictable and routine? What would it look like to bring your real self, not the polished version, to Him today?
2. What is one area of your life you’ve been avoiding in your conversations with God? What’s keeping you from bringing that to Him the way the woman at the well brought her whole story to Jesus?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for not seeing us as just another name in the crowd. Thank You for breaking every rule, crossing every boundary, and pursuing us personally. Forgive us for treating our faith like a checklist instead of a relationship. Forgive us for hiding our real selves while going through the motions. We want to know You, not just know about You. Meet us at the well today. Speak into our lives. Help us hear Your voice. Give us the courage to be honest with You about where we really are. Transform our predictable faith into a personal, intimate relationship with You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.