Its A Little Bit Funny

I have been going through a bit of a dry spot lately. Not doing much reading or praying, just trying to motor through my days and get past this thing. The highlight of my week has been sitting in men’s Bible study on Saturday morning and feeling the pores of my soul open up a little as I relax and listen to the word discussed. Sunday morning has been the same way.

Now that things are done, and life has not suddenly gotten any easier, I realize I have… ..got…..to….reach.. …for….my….Bible. So the last couple mornings I have taken a few minutes in the morning and made myself do some reading. It is always great to be reminded of the responsiveness of God when we do the things he has told us to do. I find myself feeling refreshed, and thinking, ok, I need to do more of that tomorrow. It is a little bit funny to be surprised by this feeling. It is not like He doesn’t tell us what the Word is good for.

Wait

The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.

Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD.

Be still, and know that I am God

We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.

Clearly there is something to be said for waiting on the Lord. Especially when it is the hardest thing to do. It is usually easier to grasp at action than to wait on what God has in mind. This is the foolishness of faith. Will action be called for at some point? I think so. Will I recognize it when it comes? I do not know. What if I never see a clear path to reconciliation. At some point confrontation may be needed, am I the one to do that? I can only wait.

The Fear of Isaac

In Genesis, when Jacob has finished his time with Laban and is returning to his homeland, Laban pursues him. In the midst of their conversation, Jacob refers to the Lord as the “Fear of Isaac.” A few verses later, he takes an oath in the name of the “Fear of his father Isaac.” There is no other place where God is referred to in this way. thinking about it, I can only imagine what Isaac’s relationship with the Lord must have been like, for his children to refer to it in this way.

My thought is that Isaac never really got over almost being sacrificed as a child. God had asked for his life and only relented as the knife was raised. Isaac may have taken this to heart and lived in fear of the Lord, of what the Lord might ask of him all his days. If he understood why the Lord had done this, it may have kept him from holding anything or anyone too tightly. Being human, there is a good chance he overcompensated and had a tough time in relationship with his sons. Do we see the consequences in his son’s lives? Is it reflected in their relationship with their mother or wives?