Daily Devotion, June 10, 2020

Devotion: Read Genesis 28:10-22.

 

Jacob was on a journey to Haran because his father, Isaac, had instructed Jacob to return to his mother’s family of Bethuel to marry a daughter of Laban. In verse 10, it says, “Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran.” 

Beersheba and Haran are 500 miles apart. Imagine this journey by foot. Imagine this journey without a GPS or even a paper map, mobile phone, restroom stops, fast-food restaurants, hotels, without knowing anyone along the way and with the unknown encounters with wildlife.

 (For perspective, Orlando, FL is 556 miles from Chattanooga. Imagine walking from Chattanooga to Orlando.) 

And imagine this journey out of fear that the brother you had tricked out of his birthright may come after you for revenge. Thus, 58 miles before Jacob got to Haran, Jacob is exhausted both physically and emotionally and he stops to sleep for the night, and uses a stone for a pillow.

But God is faithful. God visits Jacob in a dream. As God gave to Abram, God gives the same covenant and blessing to Jacob and Jacob’s descendents. God promises to be with Jacob wherever he goes.

In The Message Translation, the sentence, “God is in this place—truly. And I didn’t even know it!”, caught my attention. How often in the journeys of life have we not realized that God was with us? When we are going through difficult times, we might sense that God is “500 miles” away, but God is consistent throughout all of the scriptures. God is with us. God is faithful. As God kept covenant with Abraham and Jacob, God keeps covenant with us. Even when we fall away, God is faithful. Personal Worship Option: Wherever you are today, I believe you can say with Jacob, “God is in this place---truly. And I didn’t even know it!” Live in the same assurance as Jacob, “God is with you.”