PLEADING WITH GOD
Today’s Reading: Genesis 25-26
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
A couple at the Nazareth Village in modern-day Nazareth, exhibiting life as it may have been in Bible times. In today's reading we learn about what must have been many animated conversations between Isaac and Rebekah. Can you guess what the woman in the picture may be saying? If you have an idea, write it as a comment on this blog. It could be a very serious matter, but we can all appreciate some humour as well.
Key Verse: Genesis 25:21
Now Isaac pleaded with the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
Isaac and Rebekah had been married for 19 years but had no children. Isaac became desperate in his prayers. He believed the promise and God gave double…twins. Rebekah prayed also and she received a special word from God (25:23). However, the girl with the ambition to water the camels now took things into her own hands and tried to produce God’s plan rather than letting God do it. Human effort is necessary, but to revert to our own resources alone, after having prayed and received God’s provision, may not change the final outcome, and will cause heartache along the way.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Father God, above all I desire Your will as expressed in Your promises. Grant me the grace to wait on You, making my time and effort available to You, and at the same time to know that You are working all things according to Your will. Like Isaac, I plead fervently with You in prayer. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
Over the years in the service of Christ, I’ve done my best to plan and work for the fulfillment of God’s purpose as revealed in His Word. Twice, during the time I served as Chairman and President of Crossroads Christian Communications, I pushed initiatives through the Board of Directors which a majority favoured, but not all. Both times proved to be mistakes. I learned to ask the Directors to take the issue home, pray fervently, and come back to the next meeting to vote again. If we still could not agree unanimously, we dropped the matter or changed course. Like Rebekah, I’m a “Get it done” person. God has used this drive, but I must be careful. The Crossroads Directors approved the sponsorship of this daily blog. Granted, it was not a huge and costly outreach like our participation in four World Expositions (all unanimously approved), but it illustrates the fact that unity brings the blessing of God on our lives and ministry decisions.
In Christ’s love and service,
David
P.S. With unity we can see the fulfillment of big and little visions. As a result of having a Christian Witness at four World Expos, over 100,000 precious people registered first-time decisions for Christ at our pavilions in Vancouver, Brisbane, Seville, and Hanover! Below is a photo of our first such effort…Pavilion of Promise at Expo ’86 in Vancouver.
Rebekah: “I’ve got a better idea … why don’t YOU water the camels tonight!”
🙂
Be the type of person you want to meet
Let’s prepare the camels and trot over to Sleep Country for one of those queensized mattreses. You take up too much room on the bedroll since we came here. You’ve put on weight from all the blessings God has bestowed upon us, you handsome man, you!
lol love this one
thanks for a good laugh!
We were at Expo 86 in Vancouver, Praise God for the ministry God has given
you, May God continue to bless you with health and strength!!!
May be they were discussing their disappointment of the choise of Esau wives,
they were a sorurceof grief to Isaac and Rebekah.
Maria F.
I am just curious why people lived so long in those days. Surely there were no multi-vitamins.
How uncivilized people were and still are if God isn’t allowed to guide them in their daily lives. Imagine fighting over water wells knowing they’re life sustaining.
Enjoying Genesis! Thank you Rev. DM et al.
Blessings.
there is a great book on this called Genetic Entropy by John C. Sandford, he was interviewed on 100 Huntley Street I’m sure you can find the interview in the archives. Very basically he states that humans are not evolving we are de-volving, just like the bible predicts. People in the past were no doubt much healthier than we are today.
Thank you so much Sherry for your comment. I’m going to look up that interview.
I believe they lived longer because God allowed it- remember there is that line in Scripture that states that God eventually limited a human life to 120 years. Science today has concluded if nothing were to happen to us our bodies would last about 120 years, that is the longest we could live.
Will look that up too Donna. Thanks for that.
Genesis 6:3
Then the LORD said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”
Hey! Thank you David.
I think their multivitamins were in their food and no additives, pesticides or fast foods to poison them. Perhaps also God allowed longer lives to populate the earth.
What interesting thoughts Denise. Makes sense! Thank you.
…but dear. Jacob loves to help me prepare your meals. He does not want to hunt with his brother. Can you not see that in him?
Blessings my blog friends…
“Sarah, I can’t believe you dented the camel again, where did you get your licence, from the Philistines”!
My Life Isaac! These two daughter-in-loves are driving me up the wall! What are you going to do about it?! Just fix it! or l’ll die!
Sarah might be saying…”Abraham, where you specific when you asked God for babies? Next time, one at a time would be Ok!
Its your turn to bring the water I think people lived so long back then because they ate food that wasn t processed they ate clean food
love all thd comments love all my fellow bloggers
She had just met this new guy….”Let me get this straight—You are asking me to marry you and to go a long way off from my family?? pause—OK if you tell me how many camels, oxen and mules you have and is your father a big rancher?”..
It would have been fun if we could actually hear what went on at this time……
They were still filling the place with people so they had to live longer…….now we need to fill the whole world with the gospel so we can live forever……….
Amen!
Dear Rev. David M.
Thank you for todays wonderful segment of Genesis. It was really fun to let our imagination decide wnat Rebeka and Issac were discussing or even slightly arguing about.
According to my own personal guessing , Rebeka would say how am I supposed to handle two young boys while you are gone out of town . I may be quite gifted handling camels , but when it comes to handling Esau and Jacob we need to be togather.
Like you Rev. David, I have a great tendecy to have things done yesterday and of course the results are most of the time disasterous, but thank God as I pray daily before any project making sure my Heavenly Father not only approves but is completely at the wheel, if not to stop me on the spot.
Have a blessed day everyone.
xoxoxo Carole.
My understanding is that before the flood the atmosphere was different than after the floor…there was no rain before the ark…rather a form of moisture.
I believe this is what contributed to their health.
Maybe Rebekah is demanding that Isaac do something about their childless condition…
When things need doing perhaps in church I sign up and I like serving the Lord however sometimes people do the things and I get upset! Please pray and ask God to help me with my outbursts! I need to “KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT” AND JUST SMILE AND WALK AWAY! I do talk to someone immediately and confess my anger or I have phoned the prayer lines and confessed and received prayers and have forgiven the person who hurt me. I know it sounds childish, but it is something I have to work on. I pray I am getting a bit better, I get caught up because I like to serve, I sign up to serve, than someone else does the work and I “mouth off” which is not God-like and then I have to repent and forgive. I need to count to 100 next time. Prayers very much appreciated. Blessings and I am so thankful to be going through this blog again.
Way to go Sah. That’s exactly what God wants us to do – confess and ask for forgiveness. He will help you and strengthen you. How wonderful that you are so willing to help. God bless you.
Perhaps you are serving him by your willingness to work through your issues, that others see you asking for forgiveness and going for prayer–setting a good example of being humble enough to admit your errors, so maybe that is the work, God is doing through you, rather than work you wanted to do for Him.