Last evening. Can you spot the Jessie? 🤣 She kinda missed. Completely. Ya win some, ya lose some. 🐾 🥰 🐾 😉 🐾 #JessieTheBorderCollie💜🐾 #WhataKnucklehead #26December2022 #MyJessie🐾💜 (at Susquehanna Trails, Pennsylvania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmrvUcRvC3s/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
Jessie. She hovers. She won't go run around the yard. I try to shovel, and she's practically up my ass. *sigh* #WhatAKnucklehead #JessieTheBorderCollie🐾💜 #BorderCollie #Pennsylvania #PeachBottomTwp #YorkCountyPA #Snowing❄️ #07february2021 (at Susquehanna Trails, Pennsylvania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLAAfKNjpuR/?igshid=uq2ig739kbma
She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children. Genesis 29:35
Life wasn't great in Jacob's family and that was Jacob's fault.
After Jacob was done working the 7 years for Rachel's hand in marriage, Rachel's father tricked him, gave him her older, less attractive sister Leah as his wife. So Jacob, determined to marry Rachel worked another 7 years and now had 2 wives, the sisters Leah and Rachel. (Newsflash: that is NOT good!)
The situation got even worse because Jacob loved Rachel and not Leah. (I bet you didn't see that coming!) . Leah however, loved Jacob and saw an opportunity to be loved by him. It seems from reading the earlier parts of this chapter her father, Laban, really didn't really love her either. She was a pawn to trick Jacob and now she was married to a man who didn't love her. But she thought, if she had children with Jacob, he would love her. She gave Jacob three sons - all the while the Lord didn't allow Rachel to have children. And the names of Leah's sons are telling.
The first son was named Reuben (The Lord has seen my misery). Leah said, "The Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now." The second Simeon (The Lord hears). Leah said, "The Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too." The third son was Levi (means attached). Leah said, "Now at last my husband will be attached to me, because I have born him three sons." But after each son, sadly, Jacob didn't love Leah any more than he did before.
There are times we are like Leah, looking for love and acceptance in all the wrong places. You see, we all have this desire for security born out of our desire to be filled with love. Unfortunately, we look for that love and acceptance in all the wrong places. We work our tail off to be noticed and needed by co-workers and a boss. We may sacrifice our morals or beliefs to be accepted by a crowd of people who are pretty popular. We may even run after love from other people, multiple people, or even leave a spouse to be "loved better". We might run after riches, a bigger house, more toys, and stuff, all to be accepted by a group or people in our neighborhood. In all these cases, we're looking for love in all the wrongs places.
The reason Leah wasn't satisfied and you and I aren't satisfied is that we're trying to fill a void in our heart only God can fill. There aren't any people or things that can love you perfectly to save you. The only one who can and DOES love you perfectly is God.
Leah learned that and found the love she was looking for from the Lord. He had loved her from the start, she just hadn't relied on it or found her peace in that love. She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children.
Leah found she was loved perfectly by the Lord and that was enough for her. Even if her husband wouldn't and didn't ever love her, she had the Lord's love and that love would carry her through life and into heaven's eternity.
That same love of the Lord is for you too. The Lord loved you to death, literally. The Lord loved you to hell and back again, literally. You are perfectly and unconditionally loved by the Lord. He died to forgive you and rose from the dead to defeat hell and bring you to heaven. No one has ever or could ever give that kind of love to you. But God has. So rest in his love for you that belongs to you always. It will lead you to praise God in spite of all circumstances.
