Taylor talked about how long it took him to film this series. He said it took over a month because he kept reshooting, afraid of making any mistakes. He described filming with flies in his house, then filming again two weeks later with a zit on his face that he couldn’t stop staring at. He points out that many of us freeze up in fear of letting people see that we are not perfect or the best at something. That fear leads us to hide and isolate ourselves.
He connected that to the woman at the well, who goes at noon when no one else does, then leaves her water jar and runs into town after meeting Jesus. Taylor pointed out that when she says “he told me all that I ever did,” she has to tell the full story, including the part about her husbands. He said she isn’t afraid to share it because of what Jesus has done in her life, and because she shared it, many Samaritans met Jesus. He read 1 Timothy 1:15-16, where Paul calls himself the foremost of sinners and says God saved him so his life could be held up as an example. Taylor said we have to be willing to share what Jesus transformed in order to be an example, and that some people in our lives are in the middle of a story we’re on the other side of, and they may be afraid they’re the only ones. He closed by saying that taking the first step might transform your town.
Discussion questions
Getting into the story
- After talking with Jesus, what does the woman do with her water jar, and where does she go?
- What does the woman tell the townspeople about Jesus?
- What does the passage say happened because of the woman’s story?
- In 1 Timothy 1:15-16, Paul calls himself “the foremost” of sinners. According to Paul, why did God show him mercy?
Digging in
- Taylor was so worried about flies and a zit showing up on camera that he kept re-filming. How do we stop worrying about looking perfect so we can be real with people?
- The woman told people her whole story, even the messy parts. How do we get brave enough to share the parts of our story we’d rather hide?
- Taylor said some people feel like they’re the only ones in their story. How do we help someone feel less alone when they’re going through something we’ve already been through?
- Paul said God saved him so his life could be an example for others. How do we let what Jesus has done in our lives show other people that change is possible?
Questions from the video
- Have you ever heard a story that gave you hope for your own life?
- What advice would you give someone afraid to share their story?
- How do you know you’re ready to share a story?
For parents, if you only have five minutes in the car
- What’s something you’ve been worried about looking perfect at lately, whether online, at school, or with friends?
- Is there something hard you’ve gotten through that might help a friend going through the same thing?
- Who’s one person you could be honest with this week about what’s really going on?
