Rebekah: The Consequences of Striving There are times as women that we like to take matters into our own hands. I think you can picture times in your own life when this has been true. Your toe is tapping and the clock is ticking and you’re waiting for someone, anyone, to do something. We see this even in Scripture. We notice it from the very beginning of time with Adam and Eve. We see this throughout the life of Sarah and Abraham. Women wanting action, on their own terms, and wanting it now. Such striving sometimes causes unintended consequences. It wears us out and keeps us from all the richness of God’s blessings, if only because we’re not resting fully in His power and His timing. In Genesis, there is a family led by Isaac (son of Abraham and Sarah) and Rebekah. Rebekah had been barren (like Sarah before her), and Isaac prayed for her to conceive a child. She was doubly blessed with twin boys, who, in the womb, began a lifelong struggle (Genesis 25:22). Rebekah received a prophecy that the older boy would serve the younger boy, which would have been countercultural at that time. Go ahead and read the story of those twin boys, Jacob and Esau. You can get the gist with a careful reading of Genesis 25-27. So, a quick recap: Rebekah had two boys. They were named Esau and Jacob. Esau was a red and hairy little baby, and Jacob was Rebekah’s favorite child. Jacob underhandedly bought Esau’s birthright when the boys were young. Then, with Rebekah’s help, later stole his brother’s full blessing. Because of this, Esau hated and threatened his brother, and Rebekah urged Jacob to run and work for his uncle Laban. It’s not until Genesis 32-33 that we see the brothers make up. Rebekah had a favorite son and she saw the way she wanted life to play out for him. Do you have dreams for yourself? Do you have a way you’d like to see life progress in your “best case scenario”? Are you willing to bend rules or play people in order to see those plans come to fruition? Well, Rebekah was willing to do all of those things. The problem is, it incited relational discord within the family, and a whole slew of consequences through the coming generations. Because of Esau’s hatred of Jacob, Jacob had no choice but to flee and work for Laban. As a result, Rebekah never saw her favorite son again. And Jacob, who deceived his father, ultimately was deceived by his very own sons (Genesis 37). The consequences were matched with their decisions. Our striving, our manipulating of circumstances, our frustration leading to action can cause ripples that affect our lives and the generations to come. We’d do better to rest in God’s timing rather than trying to manufacture it on our own. When I try to manufacture results in my own power, even results that have good intentions, I fail. But, when I trust God’s timing and pace, I can enjoy the blessings and endure the challenges with gratefulness and grace.
Posted on: Wed, 07 Aug 2013 12:13:39 +0000
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