GOD CAME TO JACOB

Jacob’s season at Shechem was a toxic wasteland. Jacob forgot who he was and what God had commanded. His disobedience resulted in a devastated family. Rape. Carnage. Sacrilege. Genesis 34 is the darkest chapter in the Jacob story. It’s not that God was not present, it’s that God was not sought. Jacob once again lived life by his own terms and paid a high price for doing so. What a sorry excuse for a patriarch. God will surely abandon him.

But that’s not what happens. “Then God said to Jacob, ‘Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God,…’” (Genesis 35:1 NIV). Instead of giving up on Jacob, God spoke to him. God took the initiative. God came to Jacob. And Jacob came to his senses. God never gave up on him, and he’ll never give up on you.

Devotion by Max Lucado | The Almighty Jehovah | https://thealmightyJehovah.com

He has Been There

Most families keep their family secrets a secret. Some stories remain unmentioned at the family reunion and unrecorded in the family Bible. That is, unless you’re Jesus. He displayed the bad apples of his family tree in the first chapter of the New Testament. Rahab was a Jericho harlot. David was one day writing psalms, another day seducing his captain’s wife. But did Jesus erase their names from the list? Not at all!

If your family tree has bruised fruit, Jesus wants you to know, “I’ve been there.” The phrase “I’ve been there” is in the chorus of Christ’s theme song. To the lonely, he whispers “I’ve been there. To the discouraged, Christ nods his head and sighs, “I’ve been there.” When you turn to him for help, he runs to you to help. He’s been there!

Untying Knots

Most of us had a hard time learning to tie our shoes. Tightening shoes by wrapping strings together? Nothing easy about that. Who came up with the idea of shoes anyway?

My friend Roy used to sit on a park bench watching kids gather and play at the bus stop. One day a little fellow struggled to board the bus, frantically trying to disentangle a knotted shoestring. He grew more anxious by the moment. All of a sudden it was too late. The bus door closed. With tear-filled eyes he looked at Roy on the bench and asked, “Do you untie knots?”

We never outgrow the urge to look up and say, “Help!” And when we do, who shows up? Jesus, our next-door Savior. Go ahead, ask him: “Do you untie knots?” “Yes,” he will say.

GOD CAME TO JACOB

GOD CAME TO JACOB

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He has Been There

Untying Knots

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