[Discoveries] 03-19-08 Finding love -- Genesis 29:25

[Inspiration in Your Inbox]

/*"When morning came, there was Leah!" -- Genesis 29:25*/

In the dirty tricks department, this has to rank as one the cruelest 
deceptions in the Bible. I've often thought about Jacob's dismay, but 
today I'm thinking about Leah. What pain she must have suffered! Her 
wedding night should have been one of the happiest moments in her life. 
Instead, she was trapped in her father's deception, forced to receive 
the affections and attention that she knew were intended for someone else.

And so began a lifetime of misery, knowing that she was unloved, that 
she would always live in the shadow of her younger sister, never 
measuring up.

God gave Leah six sons and a daughter. Without her husband's love, it 
seems that her children were all she had. The last time Leah is 
mentioned, she and her children are being used as a human shield to 
protect Rachel and Joseph from Esau. Like so many other people, Leah 
lived a broken life.

Where do we find happiness when our dreams are dashed to the ground like 
broken pottery?

I catch a hint of the answer in 29:31, "When the LORD saw that Leah was 
not loved, He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren."

Perhaps Jacob didn't have enough sense to love Leah at first -- or maybe 
at all -- but the LORD loved her.

We sing this little song: "Jesus loves me, this I know."

How do we know? We know God's love with our logical minds because the 
Bible tells us so. But we need to know deep inside, so we have something 
big enough and strong enough to carry us through the deep hurts of life. 
How? There is only one way. We must bring all of those unloved places in 
our hearts to God, and let Him love us back to peace and joy.

Be encouraged!
Dwight

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