Day 3: The Cup Half Full

Dante's vision of Leah and Rachel, 1855

Genesis 29:32-35

New Living Translation (NLT)

³² So Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben,^[a] for she said, “TheLord has noticed my misery, and now my husband will love me.”³³ She soon became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She named him Simeon,^[b]for she said, “The Lord heard that I was unloved and has given me another son.”³⁴ Then she became pregnant a third time and gave birth to another son. She named him Levi,^[c] for she said, “Surely this time my husband will feel affection for me, since I have given him three sons!”³⁵ Once again Leah became pregnant and gave birth to another son. She named him Judah,^[d] for she said, “Now I will praise the Lord!” And then she stopped having children.

I am so grateful that today's reading was the story of Jacob. I can never tire of reading about his life. I had a great deal of worry on my breakfast plate this morning, and had my reading been anything other than the story of Jacob, I may have been unable to focus. As it is, I am just now getting around to blogging about it.

There's so much in the story of Jacob I could post about. The amazing way God works to bring things into His will even when we act out of his will, (the deception regarding his brother's blessing), the unfairness of being suckered into marrying Rachel's sister first. Perhaps even more, the story of the mandrakes, and how Leah "purchased" Jacob for the night. Can you imagine how poor Jacob must have felt, coming home from the field, tired and dirty, only to see one of his wives running up to him telling him he had to perform sexual favors for her that night because she had bought him with some mandrakes?  And to think, people often think women were treated as chattel back then. Men weren't always treated any better!

But I decided to write about Leah's attitude, instead. Not the demanding attitude after the mandrakes, but the attitude of unfailing hope. She wasn't loved by Jacob. I suspect he resented her for more than one reason... He never wanted to marry her in the first place, then she's the one that keeps having kids, while the wife he loves is barren. Year after year, Leah kept giving birth to sons. And with each new bouncing baby boy, Leah came up with a name that expressed hope that this new child would be what would make her husband finally love her.

Of course, it never worked. He was good to her, but it was out of duty, not out of love. Still, she never gave up. And her hope wasn't placed in her son, it was always placed in God. Each new baby was a blessing from God, a gift to bring her joy, and a hope of loving affection.

As sad as it is, I have to admire her for that constant hope. She never gave up.

Day 3 Genesis 29-40

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scripture:

Genesis 39:20-24 (New King James Version)

Joseph interpreting dreams in prison

20 Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison. 21 But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. 23 The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority,[a] because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper.

observation:

being poorly treated, spitefully entrapped, and wrongly imprisoned seems to have been a recurring theme in joseph's life. but instead of letting that make him bitter, joseph submitted himself to God in spite of his circumstances, and as a result, God gave joseph what some would call a "midas touch".

application:

i wonder if joseph ever, even for a moment or two, allowed himself to indulge in anger towards the spiteful snots that caused him so much trouble? did he ever feel hatred towards his brothers for having thrown him first in a pit, then selling him into slavery? did he ever want to call potiphar's wife a hateful name after she lied and had him thrown in prison? i'll admit, it's a struggle for me not to write a hateful name about her, and i didn't even live back then!

but there's a big lesson i should learn from joseph's life. and in my head, i already know this! nothing good comes out of being angry. when you allow yourself to get consumed by emotion, that's all you can see... yourself. you sure can't see God through the haze of fury. you can't accomplish anything to make your situation better if you're ticked off all the time.

why do i forget that so often?

when we get out of our own pity party and turn our eyes back to Jesus, our sorrow can turn to joy. or even if it doesn't turn exactly into joy, it can sure seem brighter than the doom and gloom we feel when we're mad. and when we focus on doing our best for Him, in spite of our circumstances, it doesn't go unnoticed! He starts pouring out His blessings on us.

prayer:

Lord, i get awfully self-centered a lot. i frequently remind myself that i'm working for your glory, not my own paycheck... and that i should be doing it without complaint and certainly without being a bad witness. and most of the time, when i remind myself of that, i start doing a much better job! but that doesn't seem to apply to me when i'm at home. i don't do my best for you right here where it counts. i'm not always a good witness to my husband, or to our housemate. and the stuff that needs to be done around here, i tend to do half-way. i need some improvement in those areas, Lord. i know i do. but... i'm not going to ask right this moment for you to teach me how to improve! i'm just going to stop for a minute and say thanks that i HAVE a husband, and a beautiful home. you really have blessed me. for what, i'm not sure, but i am thankful. and i'm going to try to show a little more appreciation to you for what you've given me.

Day 1 Gen 1-16

Sarah listening to Abraham & the Angel by Provoost.

Scripture: 
Genesis 15:2-3 (New King James Version)

2 But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!” 

Observation:
when God makes promises, He doesn't just make empty ones. abram, in his impatience and frustration, got a bit attitudinal with God.


Application:
boy, how i can relate to that! how many times does God promise things, and yet we (i) get impatient and skeptical, and start whining about it? i could cite about a thousand examples of things i've questioned God's sincerity about. and it's not that i don't believe Him, i DO! i absolutely believe in His promises. the attitude comes from not knowing the "how" and the "when" that follows His promise. kinda reminds me of the sermons that were given at family camp.... "why, God?"

here, i'll cite a "fictional" example that entered my mind while watching a movie last night. (the book of eli). God had promised eli that if he would carry the last bible to the west coast, He would remove all obstacles and protect him, and His Word. at one point in the movie, it appeared that God failed to protect eli at all, and i found myself getting mad, thinking "hey God, but you promised!" of course, as the movie progressed, i realized that God had not failed eli at all, and that no matter how dire the circumstances appear, He is ALWAYS going to keep His promises. sometimes in the most unexpected ways.



Prayer:
Father, i know that i can count on your promises. and i also know that i have a tendency to get impatient and try to "help" you do your job... and all that does is delay things even further while you fix the damage i do when i get in your way. Forgive me for being so arrogant as to think that you could ever need my help, and teach me (gently, Lord) that the most important thing i can "do" to help you is to keep my mouth shut, my temper in check, and pray, pray, pray.