Water to Wine

Guest Journal by Hope Spear

It is with immense joy I share with you the first Guest Journal of Grace in the Moment. In the early college days of GITM we would bring in a guest writer each month, and it was one of my favorite things. When I was dreaming of what this re-launch of GITM would look like I knew immediately that I wanted to continue to host monthly guest writers. I knew I wanted to keep the rhythm of regularly bringing in outside voices, perspectives, and stories.

You will find that every guest writer has been prayerfully selected. Women and men that I hold in high esteem, and trust immensely. People who have personally enriched my life, and I know to be faith-filled and honorable. Some of the people I have looked up to most in life.

This first guest writer is all of that, and more. Hope Spear, or as I first knew her, Mrs. Spear, was my 6th grade teacher. Much of the writer that I am today was formed in her classroom. Beyond simply being an excellent teacher, Hope saw her students for who they were, and called out the good within them. I will never forget the morning I walked into school and found a hand written note from her on my desk that read,

“Hannah, I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. Everyday I see your faith in action. The way that you treat others is a constant witness. You walk what you talk. That is a huge thing to be able to do in 6th grade. Keep it up. Mrs. Spear”

I vividly remember tears filling my eyes as I read those words. I knew I was cared for, seen, and believed in. I remember thinking “maybe God is using me, maybe He will use me.” Her words lit a flame in my little 12 year old heart that dared me to believe God had purpose for my life. 14 years later, I still have that note.

Thanks to social media Hope and I were able to stay in touch as I became an adult. I still found her words to be as life giving and wise as I did when she was my teacher. Many times over I have looked to her words to help make sense of happenings in the world, her compass being the Light of the Gospel and deep care for humanity.

As I prayed over who I would ask to be my guest writers for the next few months I had a person assigned to each month except for November. I knew I wanted this one to be special, my first guest writer in this re-launch. In the midst of my prayers I received a message from Hope that said “I’ll guest write for you.” I laughed to myself, and said “okay, God, I see You,” and immediately wrote back “ARE YOU SERIOUS?!” The rest is history.

It feels like the sweetest, most full circle moment that God would allow Hope to be my first guest writer. To be able to create a space that hosts the words of someone who taught me how to find my own words is a kindness that could only be given by the Father, wrapped in a bow of holy. He’s in the details, and He doesn’t miss a thing.

So without further ado, please make welcome Hope Spear, and her Journal, Water to Wine. I’m certain it will bless you.

In 2020, I quickly realized it was going to be a crazy year. I knew I needed some anchoring point if I was going to survive. I quickly made the decision to not allow myself to use alcohol, sugar and carbs as coping mechanisms (I seriously wish I would have kept the carbs deal after 2020 with myself). I chose to read the gospels over and over again until I felt anchored. I wanted Jesus to be the loudest voice in my head. So over and over and over and over again, I read the first four books of the New Testament. For 20 solid months I read the Gospels. I can’t get over Jesus. This guy. This guy who puts mud on the eyes of a blind man (John 9:6).

This guy who knows just when the bleeding woman touched him (Luke 8:43-48).

This guy who loves the kids so much(Matthew 19:13-15).

This guy who makes time for Nicodemus to come and ask question after question (John 3:1-15).

This guy who protects a woman from being killed with stones (John 8:1-11). This guy who loves people
This guy: Jesus.

This Jesus. Over and over again the disabled, the sick, the bleeding, the hurting, the actual dead: he goes to them. He doesn’t flinch. He doesn’t act like he’s too powerful for them. He doesn’t get squirmy at their diseases or pride or death. He goes to them. He sees them.

He is so precious and dear to me. He loves riddles, people, telling stories that make people think. He has big feelings. He is exactly what we need and never what we expect. I’m protective of him like he’s a dear friend. But also, I think he is funny.

My favorite miracle he does is at the wedding at Cana. People love to use this miracle to prove Jesus enjoyed celebrations. I agree. I think Jesus knew when to work, when to rest, when to celebrate, when to laugh. I love, love, love, this miracle because of the dynamic with his mom. Now that I am a mom to a son, this whole miracle cracks me up.

John 2:1-12

To summarize:

Jesus goes to a wedding with his disciples and his mom.

It's a great wedding but the wine runs out.

So Mary says to him,

“They have no more wine.” (NIV/NLT)

“They don’t have any wine” (CSB)

“They are just about out of wine” (MSG)

“They have no wine.” (NKJV/ESV)

“Son, they have no more wine.” (FNV)

As a mom I love it. Mary sees a problem and tells him the problem. There’s no explaining why this is important. No explaining why she has come to him. It’s such a typical mother/son interaction. “The faucet is broken.” “There’s a big spider in the house.” “The car won’t start.” She expects him to do something.

It is implied that she already knew and believed and maybe even saw him fix something like this before. This was his first public miracle. But the last verse of John (21:25) tells us, If everything Jesus did was written down it would not fit in all the books of the world. It makes me wonder if Jesus could have turned water into oil as a kid at home. Or maybe he turned flour into bread. Or maybe he turned fish into more fish at home. There’s no way to know. But I like to imagine the fresh bread part. Or maybe she just knew he could. Maybe her momma gut just knew.

Then Jesus responds like a typical son. I burst out laughing everytime I read it. This interaction is so humanizing to me. It brings to life that Jesus was a son. He had a mom. They had spent years together building a relationship. She knew he was something special. She knows he can fix this wine situation. He brushes her off. He can not be bothered.

Jesus replies:

“Woman, why do you involve me? My hour has not yet come” (NIV)

“What has this concern of yours to do with me, woman? My hour has not yet come.” (CSB)

“Is that any of our business, Mother--your or mine? This isn’t my time. Don’t push me.” (MSG)

“Dear Woman, that’s not our problem. My time has not yet come.” (NLT)

“Woman, what does your concern have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” (NKJV)

“Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” (ESV)

“Honored woman, Why are you telling me? Is this our concern? It is not yet my time to show who I am.” (FNV)

I envision it like every other mother that has ever existed, “Son, the trash is full.” “So, mom, what has this to do with me?” I love it. It is so real. This whole scene makes me love them so much. I even love the ”woman” part. I am currently a parent of a 12 year old son. If he said to me “Woman, that is not my problem” many thoughts would likely go through my mind. I doubt many, if any, of them were those that went through Mary’s mind. Was their relationship good enough that it allowed him to joke with her like that?

Some commentators suggest Jesus used “Woman” to indicate that he was moving into a public relationship with her. Moving to a public ministry. Maybe. But I like to think he says “Woman” because he’s teasing her. He already knows what he’s going to do. She already knows what he is going to do.

Then just like a scene straight out of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Mary shifts straight into a stereotypical Jewish mom. She turns to the servants, and doesn't continue the conversation with Jesus. Nope, she’s done. The only person that can flat out ignore Jesus is his own mother.

“Do whatever he tells you.” (NIV, CSB, NLT, ESV, FNV)

“Whatever he tells you, do it.” (MSG, NKJV)

AND THEN JESUS DOES IT. He gets up and turns water into wine, really good wine at that. Wine that impresses people. This wine helps him reveal his glory to others so others believed in him (John 2:11). Theologians can delve more deeply into this idea of wine revealing his glory, how this miracle begins to establish he is the son of God. I, however, look at it with the eyes of a mother.

I ponder what it says about the character of God to allow Mary, his mother, to be present for his first public miracle. It feels like a gracious, tender, and kind nod to Mary to allow her to send him off into public ministry. To allow her to watch people taste and see that Jesus was good. Was she beaming with pride? Was part of her heart fearful because she knew everything would change now? Did she think this was the beginning of him reigning over the house of Jacob (Luke 1:33)? Possibly she knew it was the beginning of the end; but maybe she just knew he could fix the wine situation.

Reading that miracle helped me look at Jesus beyond Savior. He absolutely is Savior, Lord, Redeemer, Messiah. However, before he went public, he was just a boy that loved his mom and his mom loved her boy. She worried about him when she lost him at the temple. She knew he was special enough to turn water into wine. She believed in him at the very start of his ministry. Then she was there at the cross when he died (John 19:25). What was it like to love Jesus through all of it? What was it like to watch him rewrite the religious narrative, to watch him upset the Pharisees? What was it like to watch him heal people? How would a mother’s heart hold all of that?

It’s so easy for me to pick Jesus out of the Bible and stick him up on a flannel board and tell each miracle individually. To remove him from his community. But, Jesus was part of a family and a community. He doesn’t just pop out of the Bible. All these characters around him that feel like accessories to his life story, were actually deeply connected to him. Jesus stands alone as Savior of the World but he doesn’t stand alone from his people. He came for and loved the people. This deep love for the people was revolutionary.

In what ways is Jesus revolutionary to you?

About the Author…

Where Else Would We Go