Whoa! I need a flow-chart to figure out who was the mother, who was the child of this situation in Genesis 30 (Rachel, Bilhah, Dan and Naphtali - Leah, Zilpah, Gad and Asher)!
What I see is Rachel's envy - Gen 30:1 Now, when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I die."
It's remarkable that there is so much likeness in the Bible to us! I've struggled so with envy in my life and it was God who taught me to discipline myself to turn that envious thought into, "I am so happy for .... that he or she has ...." Once I began to think kindly (and not enviously) toward whomever it was, God freed me to be sincerely happy for them. And it's always a discipline to keep my eyes focused on Him instead of me. Hard work - done in His strength. (I know this is a personal comment, but wanted to share it.)
God is always - always - helping us become the person He wants us to be - if we seek Him. Praise His perseverance with us.
Well, we're reading about Isaac's kids, why not the Pancho kids. God is at work in this time too. It is great to see how our Father in heaven deals with his fallen creation from these stories showing us Christ throughout history and into our own lives. Christ is indeed the Crimson Thread. Maranatha!
Whoa! I need a flow-chart to figure out who was the mother, who was the child of this situation in Genesis 30 (Rachel, Bilhah, Dan and Naphtali - Leah, Zilpah, Gad and Asher)!
ReplyDeleteWhat I see is Rachel's envy - Gen 30:1 Now, when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, "Give me children, or else I die."
It's remarkable that there is so much likeness in the Bible to us! I've struggled so with envy in my life and it was God who taught me to discipline myself to turn that envious thought into, "I am so happy for .... that he or she has ...." Once I began to think kindly (and not enviously) toward whomever it was, God freed me to be sincerely happy for them. And it's always a discipline to keep my eyes focused on Him instead of me. Hard work - done in His strength. (I know this is a personal comment, but wanted to share it.)
God is always - always - helping us become the person He wants us to be - if we seek Him. Praise His perseverance with us.
I hope we can write personal comments! I wrote about my kids yesterday! :-)
ReplyDeleteWell, we're reading about Isaac's kids, why not the Pancho kids. God is at work in this time too.
ReplyDeleteIt is great to see how our Father in heaven deals with his fallen creation from these stories showing us Christ throughout history and into our own lives. Christ is indeed the Crimson Thread. Maranatha!