Day 3 of Week 6 The Patriarchs

October 22, 2008
Day Three of Week Six
Winning Love
Today's Treasure: Genesis 29: 32
Surely my husband will love me now.
 
Today, I do not know if I will stick to the questions in the lesson as well as I should. This lesson touched my heart in such a mighty way because a part of me can relate to Leah, and my heart breaks for her. I am blessed enough to have a husband that adores me the way Jacob adored Rachel; however, I do know what it is like to struggle with your self-esteem. I just feel that Leah spent her whole life feeling less than those around her because of her physical appearance. I know some people in my life that are so beautiful on the outside. You look at them and wonder what it would be like for others to consider you that beautiful. Yet, they struggle with their self-esteem to the point that they do not realize how others view them. It is greatly akin to anorexia. People who have this disease physically cannot see themselves the way they truly are. All they see when they look in the mirror is someone that is overweight. People who struggle with their self-esteem often never come to a point where they can see how beautiful they are without intervention from God.  
It has taken me years in the Word of God to understand that I should view myself in the way that God views me. Close your eyes for a moment and carry yourself into your child's bedroom. It is about midnight and you are going in to make sure all of the covers are pulled tight around him/her. The light from the hall is penetrating the room just enough to make little more than his/her face glow. Have you ever seen anything more beautiful? You wonder how something so beautiful came from you, and for a moment your breath is just taken away. Well, that is how I imagine God looks at us. We are His creation! It does not matter what you think the world sees in you. God is peaking in on us making sure his blanket is tightly protecting us. When He is over us, checking in, He looks down and His breath is taken away by our beauty when the glow is the reflection of His Word in our lives. What does that do for you? The Creator of the Universe thinks you are beautiful! Once you come to this realization, you must concern yourself with the rest of the world viewing you in the same way God views you. The only way this can happen is if you fill your body and mind with the Word of God. Once the Holy Spirit is alive in you and His Word is spilling out of you, everyone will begin to view you i n a way you could never imagine. I have a friend that is very dear to me. You know, honestly, I don't know if I have ever seen her in the same way someone at Wal-Mart that doesn't know her may see her. To me, she is one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen. The Holy Spirit just oozes out of her in a way that makes her glow all of the time. My goal in life is to be that for someone else. It is almost too much to conceive in my mind. Sandy Broome spoke at a women's retreat that I was blessed enough to go to a few weeks ago. She did an amazing job, and she said something very profound that will always stick with me. Think about this, "The reflection in a mirror is the way we are viewed by our culture, not our Creator!"
 
Now, back to Leah! How this girls self-esteem must have suffered through the happenings in her life. Leah's father tricks her husband into marrying her by using her beautiful sister to stand in for her at the wedding feast. Then, when it is dark and her husband is drunk, he puts Leah in Rachel's place and has her sleep with Jacob so he is bound to her in marriage. How exactly would that make you feel? Not to mention the fact that your husband wakes up in horror, and immediately goes to plead his case with your father. Instead of saying, "that's fine, I'll be happy with this one." He says, "I will keep this one, but I am going to work seven more years for the one I really want!" Honey, I would have been on the next train out of there and never looked back. Leah did not have that option. It was a matter of survival for her. All she knew was where she was, and no one was going anywhere. So she was forced into a life of being unloved by her husband and hated by her sister. I am sure she felt as if no one cared about her, but SOMEONE did!!!
 
I am going to list the children born to Leah and Rachel and the meaning of their names. Watch as Leah realizes who cared enough to embrace her.
Reuben was born to Leah.  
Name means "The Lord sees my misery. Surely my husband will love me"
Simeon was born to Leah.  
Name means "The Lord heard that I am unloved and He gave me this son"
Levi was born to Leah.  
Name means "Now my husband will be attached to me b/c I have given him 3 sons" 
Judah was born to Leah.  
Name means "This time I will praise the Lord"
Dan was born to Rachel's maidservant Bilhah. He was named by Rachel.
Name means "God has vindicated me and listened to my plea and given me a son"
Naphtali was born to Bilhah, the maidservant. He was named by Rachel.
Name means "I have a great struggle with my sister and I have won"
Gad was born to Leah's maidservant, Zilpah. He was named by Leah.
Name means "What good fortune"
Asher was born to Leah's maidservant, Zilpah. He was named by Leah.
Name means "How happy I am. The women will call me happy"
Issachar was born to Leah.  
Name means "God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband"
Zebulum was born to Leah
Name means "God has presented me with a precious gift. Now my husband will honor me"
Dinah was born to Leah.
Joseph was born to Rachel
Name means "God has taken away my disgrace. May the Lord add me another son."
 
Take a moment to look over all of these names and the meanings behind their assignment. Now would you have rather been named by Leah or Rachel? It seems that every name given by Leah has to do with love and blessing. Rachel was more concerned with revenge when she was naming her brood. Take a look at the names of the first three. As Sandy pointed out during the retreat, Leah was very consumed with these children being the way to make her husband love her. She was seeking the approval of her husband and love from him. When we get to child number four she has changed her perspective from obsession with her husband to praising God for seeing, hearing and blessing her. Now her focus seems to be moving to the right track. That is the kind of transformation I want people to see in my life.
 
Another interesting point that we discussed in Bible Study on Tuesday is the fact that Christ came from the tribe of Judah. Judah was one of Leah's children. Do you wonder if God had an affinity to Leah that He did not have with Rachel. Why did he choose Leah's line to bring forth the Savior of the world? I do not think it is coincidence that Christ came from the first child Leah gave birth to that she used to praise the Lord. His name literally means, "Praise". Isn't this amazing!!! If you have ever read any commentary on why Leah's line may have been chosen, please e-mail me and share your knowledge!
 
Now, consider the following questions to relate this story to your own life:
1. What did Leah lack?
2. What did Rachel lack?
3. What do you feel like you lack most in your life?
4. Does this lack ever make you feel somewhat desperate?
 
There is no void in your life that God cannot fill. If you are willing to give it to him, as Leah did, He will bless you more than you could ever imagine.
 
Thank you for allowing me to express myself today!!!
I love you all so very much!!!
Have a blessed day,
Tiffany