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Printed Service – Sunday 8th March 2026
Prepared by Rev. Paulson Devasahayam
Let go of scarcity, embrace abundance
Call to Worship On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. ( John 7:37-38)
Opening Prayer
Living God, source of our being, we come to you just as we are, to worship you and to glorify your holy name. Open our hearts to experience you more. Open our minds to understand you more. Challenge us where we need courage, change us where we need renewal, and shape us to serve you. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Hymn StF 51 Great is thy faithfulness
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Great is thy faithfulness, O God, my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with thee.
Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
As thou hast been, thou forever wilt be.
Great is thy faithfulness, Great is thy faithfulness,
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed thy hand hast provided;
Great is thy faithfulness,
Lord unto me.
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine and ten thousand beside.
Prayer of Praise
Dear Jesus, you came that we may have life, and have it abundantly; you are the living water. Dear Jesus, you did not consider equality with God; rather, you made yourself nothing and took the very nature of a servant; you are the living water.
Dear Jesus, you were tempted in every way, just as we are—yet you did not sin; you are the living water.
Dear Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith, you endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God; you are the living water.
Dear Jesus, you will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for you; you are the living water. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Merciful God, we acknowledge that though we know the light, we loved the darkness; though we know the living water, we drank from other sources; though we know the right, we chose the wrong; though we know the way, we walked our own path. Have mercy on us, O Lord. Amen.
Reading John 4: 7-26
When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.” “I have no husband,” she replied. Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.” “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”
Hymn StF 544 As the deer pants for the water
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As the deer pants for the water
So my soul longs after you
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship you
You alone are my Strength, my Shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship you.
I want You more than gold or silver
Only You can satisfy
You alone are the real joy-giver
And the apple of my eye
You’re my Friend and You are my Brother
Even though You are a King
I love You more than any other
So much more than anything
Sermon – Let go of scarcity, embrace abundance
In many Hindu temples, devotees offer sweets especially round, ball-shaped sweets called laddus to the deity. Because it is a holy place, they cannot use chemicals or pesticides to keep ants away. But still, ants naturally come when they smell something sweet.
So, what the temple workers do is very simple. They put a small ring of sugar granules around or near the offered laddu. When the ants come, drawn by the strong smell of the big sweet, before they reach the real offering, they meet the sugar granules. The ants stop there. They get busy with the small bits of sugar, and they feel satisfied with that. So, they never reach the main sweet offered to the deity.
This shows something about our life too. We long for God’s fullness, but we settle for temporary comforts. We desire deep peace, but we get distracted by quick reliefs. We dream of abundant life, but we end up holding only small pieces.
Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman beautifully carries the same message that is moving from scarcity to abundance. We see that the woman came for only a little water to get through the day. But Jesus offers her living water, the abundance of God. How is it possible?
Firstly, Crossing the Boundaries of Identity
One of the major parts of the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman is the question of identity. And when we talk about abundance, we must begin with this same question: Who is Jesus, the One who gives abundance? In fact, throughout the whole Gospel of John, the evangelist is constantly showing us who Jesus is.
At the start of their conversation, the Samaritan woman asks, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” In her question, she is challenging Jesus’ identity.
Almost as if she is saying: “Do you know who you are? Do you understand the boundaries between us?”
Jesus becomes controversial here in two strong ways: firstly, Jesus crosses religious and ethnic boundaries
Secondly, he crosses cultural and gender norms because men did not speak openly with unrelated women. But instead of defending himself or explaining his position, Jesus reveals something deeper. “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” Here, Jesus gives her a clue, a direction to look beyond the surface.
Your scarcity problem is not with Jesus, and it is not with God’s generosity.
The real problem is you do not truly recognise who is standing before you. Jesus is gently telling her “Point your finger not at Me, but at yourself. Are you willing to see who I am?
Are you willing to ask?” Only when we are willing to cross the boundaries of identity can we truly embrace the abundance God offers.
Jesus breaks every human-made division. He removes the barriers we build, the barriers of religion, ethnicity, culture, gender, shame, past mistakes. And in doing so, Jesus opens the way for abundance, for living water, for a new identity.
Secondly, Crossing the Boundaries of Worship
We see that the woman raises the issue of spiritual division. She immediately points to the old argument about where people should worship. For her, worship is tied to a place, to a mountain, to a tradition. But Jesus defines worship not by where the worshipper stands, but by who God is.
Jesus replies “Believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father
neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.” With these words, Jesus gently invites her to cross the boundaries of religiosity.
Jesus lifts her vision from a place to a Person, from tradition to truth and from location to relationship. By doing this, Jesus again opens the door to abundance. Because when worship is tied only to place, we live in scarcity only certain people, certain groups, certain locations. But when worship is centred on who God is, everyone, everywhere, at any moment can receive living water.
Thirdly and finally, Crossing the Boundaries of Understanding
We see the woman lifting the conversation to a higher spiritual level. She says “I know that the Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us. “This shows that she already has some understanding. She knows a Messiah is coming.
She is waiting for someone who will bring clarity, truth, and answers.
In response, Jesus speaks a powerful revelation, a statement that echoes the way God revealed himself to Moses “I, the one speaking to you — I am he.”
“I am He.” This is more than a simple introduction. It is almost a teaser of the greater “I AM” teachings that will unfold throughout the Gospel of John. When Jesus says, “I am He,” the woman suddenly recognises the true source of living water. Her partial understanding becomes full revelation. Her curiosity becomes conviction.
And we immediately see a change in action. She leaves her water jar, leaving behind her old identity and old thirst. She runs back to her village. She becomes a kind of apostle to her own community, saying “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did!” This is where Jesus helps her and helps us, to cross the boundary of intellect and limited understanding. She moves from small knowledge to true faith, from expectation to experience, from receiving to proclaiming.
Dear friends, the Samaritan woman’s story reminds us that she came expecting ordinary water, but Jesus gave her eternal satisfaction. She came with shame, but Jesus gave her a new identity. She came quietly at noon, but she returned as a bold witness to her whole town. Shall we have the courage and commitment to move from scarcity to abundance by crossing the boundaries that limit us—whether they are boundaries of identity, worship, or understanding? Amen.
Music for Reflection : Fill My Cup, Lord
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Like the woman at the well, I was seeking
For things that could not satisfy.
And then I heard my Savior speaking—
“Draw from My well that never shall run dry.”
Fill my cup, Lord;
I lift it up Lord;
Come and quench this thirsting of my soul.
Bread of Heaven, feed me till I want no more.
Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole.
There are millions in this world who are seeking
For pleasures earthly goods afford.
But none can match the wondrous treasure
That I find in Jesus Christ my Lord.
So my brother if the things that this world gives you
Leave hungers that won’t pass away,
My blessed Lord will come and save you
If you kneel to Him and humbly pray—
Prayer of Intercession
Lord, at this time we come to you and place our petitions before you. You are the one who alone offers true abundance. Grant us Your abundant blessings in our lives.
We seek your healing, not only for our bodies, but for complete healing of mind, spirit, and relationships. Lord, we also ask your blessings upon our families and friends who are in need of your touch today.
We pray for your blessings to meet our daily needs. We pray for everyone working in different places and positions. Strengthen them and guide them in all their responsibilities.
We pray for those in leadership in our churches and in our country. Bless them to serve with integrity, wisdom, and compassion. We also commit our churches and all their ministries into Your hands. Bless every endeavour, every event, and everything happening in our church and on our church premises.
Lord, help us to drink from You, the true living water, so that our souls may be satisfied. Help us to show others the true source of living water through our words and through our works. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Lord’s Prayer : Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Hymn StF 434 Rock of Ages, cleft for me.
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Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee;
let the water and the blood,
from thy wounded side which flowed,
be of sin the double cure;
save from wrath and make me pure.
Not the labors of my hands
can fulfill thy law’s demands;
could my zeal no respite know,
could my tears forever flow,
all for sin could not atone;
thou must save, and thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,
simply to the cross I cling;
naked, come to thee for dress;
helpless, look to thee for grace;
foul, I to the fountain fly;
wash me, Savior, or I die.
While I draw this fleeting breath,
when mine eyes shall close in death,
when I soar to worlds unknown,
see thee on thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee.
Blessings : May God our Father, the Creator who formed us; Jesus Christ, the true Living Water; and the Spirit who hovered over the waters, bless our journeys, guide our thoughts, and lead us safely as we cross the Jordans of our life. Amen.