Jacob was tricked by Laban into marrying two wives. Is there anything we can learn from such a story? Well it turned out to be the topic of our sermon last Sunday, which can be found here.
At the heart of the story is the love that Jacob has for Rachel. It is an experience of human love and longing that seems to transform Jacob. Instead of getting mad or getting even (as he previously seemed inclined to do in situations of conflict) Jacob is prepared to sit it out and accept that sometimes landing your dream girl took longer than you expected.
Such seems to be lesson that applies to many areas of our lives. We all have our hopes and dreams. But we are nor masters of our own destiny. We need patience. We need to accept that things may not turn out exactly as we had expected. We need to keep trusting that God is on our case and for that reason, whatever transpires is ultimately in God’s hands!
That is never easy. Jacob learnt that lesson the hard way! Affairs of the heart have a tendency to be complicated. Circumstances can change in a heartbeat. We never quite escape our past. We can never be sure of the actions of those around us.
For our part the best we can do is trust in God, and prayerfully seek the guidance and leading of the Holy Spirit in the different situations that come our way.
Prayer: “Lord, we do not always understand Your ways! Stories from the past challenge us and invite us to rethink our attitudes. Yet Lord You blessed Jacob, and You blessed both Rachel and Leah. Help us to understand that You desire only our best, no matter what others do to us or the mess we get ourselves into! Amen.”
Monday, July 25, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Jacob’s Ladder
Whilst Jacob sleeps he dreams of a ladder reaching to the heavens. A sermon reflecting on Jacobs experience can be found here.
One of the phrases from the story that resonates with myself is Genesis 28: 16 when Jacob ponders “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it”
Finding God in the midst of our everyday lives can take us by surprise. I know that as Christians we give lip service to grand theological phrases like ‘omnipresence’ (meaning ‘always there’) but it still throws us a curve ball when that presence is discovered in tangible ways.
As summer congregations dwindle and folks have more significant things to do with their time than attend church services, it can raise all sorts of questions in a pastor’s mind.
But then I remember, thank God, that it’s not about me. It’s about that presence of God that often we don’t recognize. Jacob had a deep sense of awe when he awoke from his dream. God was going to bless others through his compromised life.
Remembering that ‘The Lord is in this place’ can save us from feeling our efforts are futile or insignificant. We love because Christ first loved us. We serve because Christ came to serve. We believe because God believes in us.
And though attendance may well be down during the summer months the most important focus of any worship service remains our Lord Jesus Christ, who promises that wherever even two or three gather in His name, He is going to be in the midst of it all.
Prayer: ”Lord remind us that it is never about the numbers, but all about the grace You have revealed to us in and through Jesus Christ. As Jacob dreamt of a ladder teeming with angels, help us to be aware of the unseen cloud of witnesses always surrounding our lives. May we know like Jacob that ‘Surely the Lord is in this place’. Amen.”
One of the phrases from the story that resonates with myself is Genesis 28: 16 when Jacob ponders “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it”
Finding God in the midst of our everyday lives can take us by surprise. I know that as Christians we give lip service to grand theological phrases like ‘omnipresence’ (meaning ‘always there’) but it still throws us a curve ball when that presence is discovered in tangible ways.
As summer congregations dwindle and folks have more significant things to do with their time than attend church services, it can raise all sorts of questions in a pastor’s mind.
But then I remember, thank God, that it’s not about me. It’s about that presence of God that often we don’t recognize. Jacob had a deep sense of awe when he awoke from his dream. God was going to bless others through his compromised life.
Remembering that ‘The Lord is in this place’ can save us from feeling our efforts are futile or insignificant. We love because Christ first loved us. We serve because Christ came to serve. We believe because God believes in us.
And though attendance may well be down during the summer months the most important focus of any worship service remains our Lord Jesus Christ, who promises that wherever even two or three gather in His name, He is going to be in the midst of it all.
Prayer: ”Lord remind us that it is never about the numbers, but all about the grace You have revealed to us in and through Jesus Christ. As Jacob dreamt of a ladder teeming with angels, help us to be aware of the unseen cloud of witnesses always surrounding our lives. May we know like Jacob that ‘Surely the Lord is in this place’. Amen.”
Monday, July 11, 2011
Jacob and Easu
Jacob and Esau. The conflicting twin boys who came out of the womb fighting each other. They became the subject of our sermon this past Sunday, a sermon that you can find here.
I admit to enjoying these Old Testament stories of family conflict and rivalry. They seem to ring so true to contemporary life and appear to be mirrored in every age. From the rivalry of Emperors’ of Rome, to the struggle of European monarchies, from Popes to Reformers, maybe even in the conflicts of Republicans and Democrats, there are those underlying structures of family and power.
And then in our own lives, as so well expressed by Paul, there are our personal struggles. The singer/songwriter Garth Brooks comments, “The greatest conflicts are not between two people but between one person and himself.”
As I read these stories I am reminded of our urgent need for the Grace of God to redeem us and for the Holy Spirit to recreate our lives. And I don’t mean just in some abstract way, but in a daily way that touches on the way we approach our routine tasks and how we speak and act with one another… in the present.
Thankfully the promises of God’s grace towards us are universal in application. Let us reach out and make them ours this week!
Prayer : “Lord, help me find my way in Your way! Amen.”
I admit to enjoying these Old Testament stories of family conflict and rivalry. They seem to ring so true to contemporary life and appear to be mirrored in every age. From the rivalry of Emperors’ of Rome, to the struggle of European monarchies, from Popes to Reformers, maybe even in the conflicts of Republicans and Democrats, there are those underlying structures of family and power.
And then in our own lives, as so well expressed by Paul, there are our personal struggles. The singer/songwriter Garth Brooks comments, “The greatest conflicts are not between two people but between one person and himself.”
As I read these stories I am reminded of our urgent need for the Grace of God to redeem us and for the Holy Spirit to recreate our lives. And I don’t mean just in some abstract way, but in a daily way that touches on the way we approach our routine tasks and how we speak and act with one another… in the present.
Thankfully the promises of God’s grace towards us are universal in application. Let us reach out and make them ours this week!
Prayer : “Lord, help me find my way in Your way! Amen.”
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Lives of Faith.
We began our summer sermon series on the life of Jacob by taking a look at one of the Patriarchs who came before him, namely Abraham, the great Father of Faith. A sermon reflecting on two of the folk he interacted with, namely Hagar and Ishmael, can be found here.
The soap opera like account of the dysfunctional family that gave birth to Jacob does not make for easy reading. Lies, betrayal and a capacity for doing it all wrong are consistent character defects. The voice of God is often not heard, until after the situation that could have been avoided has taken place.
Yet, the wonder of it all is that the grace of God wins every time. This gives me some hope. I see the mess we often make of things, and realize that over and again we display a great inability to rightly discern the voice of God.
These Old Testament stories carry the simple truth that God is greater than we are. As we face problems both at an individual and corporate level, we do well to remember that!
Prayer: ‘Lord, it is often the simple things that we fail to grasp. That we do better when we follow Your leadings. That though we miss up, you offer forgiveness and a chance to get it right through Jesus Christ. That Your Holy Spirit is there to be the strength in the midst of our weakness. Remind us often of these simple truths we pray. Amen.’
The soap opera like account of the dysfunctional family that gave birth to Jacob does not make for easy reading. Lies, betrayal and a capacity for doing it all wrong are consistent character defects. The voice of God is often not heard, until after the situation that could have been avoided has taken place.
Yet, the wonder of it all is that the grace of God wins every time. This gives me some hope. I see the mess we often make of things, and realize that over and again we display a great inability to rightly discern the voice of God.
These Old Testament stories carry the simple truth that God is greater than we are. As we face problems both at an individual and corporate level, we do well to remember that!
Prayer: ‘Lord, it is often the simple things that we fail to grasp. That we do better when we follow Your leadings. That though we miss up, you offer forgiveness and a chance to get it right through Jesus Christ. That Your Holy Spirit is there to be the strength in the midst of our weakness. Remind us often of these simple truths we pray. Amen.’
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
