As a lover of stories and a wrangler of the written word, there’s no better place to look for inspiration than the Bible. It’s all there: drama, scandal, amazing love. Imperfect, relatable human characters struggling to make sense of their heartache … and of course, the ultimate happily ever after. As a Christ-follower, there’s also no better place to go when our dry and weary souls thirst for hope. For a tangible reminder that despite our best efforts to manipulate and orchestrate our own plans, the God of the universe still orders our steps. I find real comfort in that truth, don’t you?
I’m working my way through She Reads Truth‘s ‘Women in the Word’ online Bible study this summer. I haven’t read it consistently but today I felt compelled to pick back up and I chose ‘Rebekah’. While it’s easy to wrinkle my nose at her manipulative behavior, I must confess that I often behave in much the same fashion. No, I’m not an accomplice to my sons tricking each other out of their birthright, but I’m definitely guilty of telling the Lord how He should straighten up the messy circumstances around me. If He’d only operate on my timeline, how much easier things would be …
“The truth is, we are all Rebekahs, assuming control of our circumstances that are not ours to control.”
Our family has camped in the desert of ‘not fair’ for longer than I’d care to admit. Let me tell you, friends, it is a dry and barren wasteland. Filled with loneliness and the overwhelming temptation to let bitterness gain a foothold. If you’re camped there with us, I’d love to point you in the direction of an easy exit. That’s the Rebekah in me, I suppose, wanting to tidy it up and make the hurt go away. But I’m learning {slowly} that’s not my role. While I’ve read the story of Jacob, Rebekah, Esau and Issac many times, Esau’s words in Genesis 27:38 hit this camper especially close to home. ‘”Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.’ It is easy to see the blessings given to others and not know the struggles, too. It’s tempting to shake our fists at God and wonder if He somehow handed our heaping portion of {insert coveted blessing here} off to our neighbor.
Thankfully, the story doesn’t end with our epic tantrums and selfish demands for an easy and ‘fair’ ride into the sunset. You probably don’t need me to remind you that we are guaranteed struggles and heartache in this life. Let’s also remember, as the author of the above quote points out, we are all Jacobs, too. Children of a heavenly Father who bestows amazing grace and tremendous blessings on His people. A bunch of ungrateful, short-sighted folks who can do not one single thing to earn His favor.
Now that’s a scandalous love story I can get behind.
“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” -Romans 12:9-12
photo credit: Canva
