Back to the drawing board

And Laban said to Jacob, because you are my brother, should you not therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be? And Jacob loved Rachael; and said, I will serve you seven years for Rachael your younger daughter. - Genesis 29:15,18

Memories are like stones, time and distance erode them like acid. - Ugo Betti, Italian dramatist and poet.

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         Hollywood must be green with envy at the mastery of the script. Flawless. Creative. Dramatic and of course, romantic. A classic love-at-first-sight story. A fugitive on the run finds love. It overflows his heart crowding out his worries and calming his fears; energizing him with passion to face life. No its not a fable, its the true story of Jacob's life. He meets Rachael, his uncle's daughter and the rest, like they say , is history.

         Problem is, Jacob not only forgets the fury of his brother Esau's wrath, he also totally forgets his divine encounter in which the Lord God of heaven promises to give the land he is lying on to him ad his descendants.

         How do I know he forgot? Right after his encounter with God, in the very next chapter, he is given an opportunity to determine his wages. Isn't it shockingly amazing that, of all the things he could quote and quantify, he decides he wants to work for something God has promised to GIVE him? I am sure by the time God had said 'descendants' he had calculated for the wife factor. In any case, he laboured to earn a wife. Why? She was a built in, integral part of God's promise to him.

      Things don't work out as he plans and he finds himself in the thick of the conspiracy of all time. As a trickster he has found his match in Laban. he worked for Rachael but landed Leah. Its difficult to adequately capture the myriad of emotions he experienced, from anger to bitterness to crushing disappoint to shocked offense.

     Jacob was promised land by God, to be a ruler and owner and God promised to bless his generations. He got distracted by Rachael and her her stunning beauty. This made him a slave instead of a ruler. because he served his uncle fourteen years for her.

      If Jacob had only on his God given vision, he would still have gotten a wife from God and dominion over the land he had been promised.

     There are areas in our lives that we try to do things in our way yet God has commanded us to do other things His way. We derail from God's purpose for our lives and lose the mark the moment we stop following God's instructions and start doing our own things.

      This ends up frustrating us an at that point we stop fulfilling God's perfect purpose for our lives.

     Are there areas in your life that you left God long ago and you cannot trace your purpose? You have to go back to the drawing board and seek God to lead you again.

    Before making a decision, review where you've been with God first. That way you are sure that you are walking with Him and not forgetting any part of the deal. After all, Cesare Pavese (Italian novelist and poet), reminds us "The richness of life lies in the memories we have forgotten."

Make me Whole Again

I tried so hard to walk beside you.But when I looked up, you were hardly in view.It wasn't because you were walking too fast,but I turned around and begin to look back at things I thought would quench my thirst.

I made them my gods, and put them first.Yes, once again I looked away,but thank You Lord, You refused me to stray.Wallering down in the pit of filth,your loving hand began to sift through all my sin cleansing my soul.

Once again Lord, You've made me WHOLE.

Broken once, then broken again,how faithful You are my God and my friend.Searching my heart You only find sin,but you knock like before and ask to come in.As I slowly look up with tears in my eyes,
You assure me gently that I am Your child.

"But God not once, not twice, but everyday my selfish heart wants things now, my own way."
"Patience and time, keep seeking me,you'll grow my child, just trust and you'll see."
"But sin has filled my heart and its deep,but you OH LORD make me strong when I'm weak."

Give me the strength of Job through the trials,
Give me the song of David as He looked to the skies.
Give me the faithfulness that Ruth had within,
Give me perserverance as Paul's, when people condemn.
Give me love as Hosea's for his unfaithful wife,
Give me forgiveness as You had when Peter denied.

So grab my hand, I don't want to let go,I want to walk with you Lord, each day help me grow.Redeeming love you've shown to me and you've released me from sin, into Your arms I rest.
In Your hands I place all my cares,your peace surrounds me as I feel You there.Your promises are faithful, Your covenant true.

You've brought me out of the pit Lord, and I am walking with You!!

This is Jesus Checking in today.

A minister passing through his church in the middle of the day, decided to pause by the altar and see who had come to pray.Just then the back door opened, a man came down the aisle.The minister frowned as he saw the man hadn't shaved in a while.His shirt was kinda shabby and his coat was worn.The man knelt, he bowed his head, then rose and walked away. In the days that followed, each noon time came this guy,each time he knelt just for a moment, a lunch box in his lap.

Well, the minister's suspicions grew, with robbery a main fear,he decided to stop the man and ask him, "What are you doing here?" The old man said, he worked down the road. Lunch was half an hour.Lunchtime was his prayer time, for finding strength and power."I stay only moments, see, because the factory is so far away;As I kneel here talking to the Lord, this is what I say:

"I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I'VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHERS FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN.

DON'T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY. SO, JESUS, THIS IS JIM CHECKING IN TODAY."

The minister feeling foolish, told Jim, that was fine. He told the man he was welcome to come and pray just anytime. Time to go, Jim smiled, said "Thanks." He hurried to the door. The minister knelt at the altar, he'd never done it before. His cold heart melted, warmed with love, and met with Jesus there. As the tears flowed, in his heart, he repeated old Jim's prayer:

"I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, LORD, HOW HAPPY I'VE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND EACH OTHER'S FRIENDSHIP AND YOU TOOK AWAY MY SIN.

I DON'T KNOW MUCH OF HOW TO PRAY, BUT I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERYDAY. SO, JESUS, THIS IS ME CHECKING IN TODAY."

Past noon one day, the minister noticed that old Jim hadn't come. As more days passed without Jim, he began to worry some. At the factory, he asked about him, learning he was ill. The hospital staff was worried, but he'd given them joy. The week that Jim was with them,he brought changes in the ward.

His smiles, a joy contagious. Changed people, were his reward.The head nurse couldn't understand why Jim was so glad, when no flowers, calls or cards came, not a visitor he had. The minister stayed by his bed, he voiced the nurse's concern:

No friends came to show they cared. He had nowhere to turn.

Looking surprised, old Jim spoke up and with a smile; "the nurse is wrong, she couldn't know, that in here all the while everyday at noon He's here, a dear friend of mine, you see, He sits right down, takes my hand, leans over and says to me:

"I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, JIM, HOW HAPPY I HAVE BEEN, SINCE WE FOUND THIS FRIENDSHIP, AND I TOOK AWAY YOUR SIN.

ALWAYS LOVE TO HEAR YOU PRAY, I THINK ABOUT YOU EACH DAY,

AND SO JIM, THIS IS JESUS CHECKING IN TODAY."