John 4:27-35 - Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”
Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” They came out of the town and made their way toward him.
Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

When the disciples urged Jesus to eat something, Jesus tells them that He has food to eat that the disciples know nothing about. Jesus said that His food is to do God’s will and to finish His work. Jesus found the ultimate satisfaction in His relationship with the Father and doing God’s work. What is our food? What gives us life? Is it to do God’s will, to bring good news to someone who did not expect good news?

The disciples did not see the woman at the well as Jesus saw her. She was a Samaritan and she was a woman. But Jesus says to the disciples to open their eyes and to look at the fields, to see the thirst that was in this woman. After the Samaritan woman encounters Jesus, she leaves her water jar to tell others about Jesus. She was filled with the living water. She found satisfaction in God. Jesus calls us also to see the thirst and people’s true need for the living God. What a blessing to know that God alone satisfies us!

Let’s pray that God will open our eyes to see the people’s true need to be in relationship with God!

-DP

Contractors will be installing new electrical manholes near the Fine Arts, Engineering and ITE Buildings in support of our new Interdisciplinary Life Sciences Building between July 5th and August 25th, 2017. The work will require temporary closure of a stairway and a portion of the sidewalk between ITE and Engineering.  Accessibility routes will continue to be available through the ITE building and no building entrances or exits will be closed due to this work.  Please follow posted signage directing pedestrians to accessible routes.  This project is labeled as Q on our construction activity map.

Please visit our detailed construction activity map for more information about ongoing and upcoming campus projects.

As we continue to move forward with this important construction project and others across campus, we encourage you to visit the Facilities Management website and join our myUMBC group to receive news and updates and stay apprised of how construction projects across campus may impact you.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us.