A Mother's Curse

Gen. 27: 13  "But his mother (Rebekah) said to him (Jacob), 'Your curse be upon me, my son...'"

I'm not sure if Rebekah's favoritism of Jacob was always so ruthless, but she was NOT going to let Esau have Isaac's blessing.  Nope.  That was going to be for Jacob no matter what it cost her.  She plotted, schemed, lied and played the "you will obey me" card on her fully grown son in order to get what she wanted;  what God had promised her when the boys were still in her womb...the older was to serve the younger (see Gen. 24:23).

Then, after Jacob has secured the blessing and Esau is consoling himself with the idea he will wait until after their father dies and then kill his brother, Rebekah plots further by sending Jacob away to her brother's house "for a few days" until Esau's temper cools off.

Only Jacob doesn't return for twenty-some years. 

This son who was her favorite, who consoled her when Esau's wife made her life miserable, was gone.  She missed his weddings and the births of numerous grandchildren.  She missed out on so very much in those years all because she couldn't wait for God to provide in His own time and in His own way. 

We will never know how God would have worked out the details to fulfill His promise of the older serving the younger because Rebekah was not willing to leave it to God.  Nope.  She only saw one way this could happen, time was running out since it appeared Isaac was going to die at any moment, and God was too late.

Like me, I think Rebekah probably prayed specifically for God to fulfill his promise to bless Jacob as she saw best.  "Dear God, let Isaac give Jacob his blessing instead of Esau."  And any deviation from this plan was not the answer she wanted, was not the answer she was looking for, was not going to satisfy her.

God is so much bigger than our plans, and yet we often refuse to see how He could possibly honor his promises differently than the way we think or imagine.  I wonder if Rebekah would have lost 20 years with her son if she would have allowed God to keep His promise His way.  I wonder if she came to realize God's way would have been better than hers.  I wonder if she felt cursed because she failed to let God be God.

I wonder how many things in my life are completely out of whack because I failed to let God be God and work out the details in His own time and in His own way.

Until next time,
Becca