Jacob, Jacob, Jacob Genesis 26-28
I am the mother of a blended family. My husband and I have 7 children; yours mind and ours. I am constantly amazed how different each child is from their siblings, even from a very young age. From the time they are infants each child has had a personality and traits unique only to them. I have a mix of extroverts, introverts, athletes, intellectuals, talkers and negotiators. It's all very entertaining at family dinners. You would think that parents prefer the quiet kids, but not me. I found the quiet ones to be the ones I really had to watch out for. The loud, arguers had a hard time hiding anything, you always knew what they thought and exactly what was on their mind. The silent types are the ones that you discover have been sneaking out the window for the past 5 years, or have quietly laid out traps so their siblings take the rap for their infractions.
Jacob falls into the sneaky category. He, with his mothers help, plays a mean trick on Isaac to get the blessing that should have gone to his older brother Esau. Using a hairy goat skin and the smell of "gamey meat" to trick his now blind father they pass Jacob off as his brother. Afterwards his mother realizing the hornets nests she has stirred, tells Jacob to run for his life. Esau in his anger at his father, and the injustice of it all, goes out and marries a Canaanite woman to get even, knowing this goes against his fathers beliefs and wishes. Meanwhile on his way from Beersheba to Haran, seeking refuge with his mothers relatives, Jacob takes a nap and gets a glimpse of a ladder to heaven. God chooses this moment to re-state the promise made to his grandfather Abraham. Jacob declares then and there that if God will preserve and care for him, he will follow Him.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29
New International Version (NIV)
27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him.
I can second that a heart of gratefulness is sooooo key!!! It is humbling to really think about how we do absolutely nothing for God to love us, redeem us, and bless us. It is an honor to be called by him!
ReplyDeletewhat confuses me a little is that Jacob was holding onto the heal of his brother so they must have been identical twins? does this bother anybody else?
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