(Genesis 29:1-30) Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the sons of the east. 2 He looked, and saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep were lying there beside it, for from that well they watered the flocks. Now the stone on the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, they would then roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where are you from?” And they said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” And they said, “We know him.” 6 And he said to them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “It is well, and here is Rachel his daughter coming with the sheep.” 7 He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.” 8 But they said, “We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered, and they roll the stone from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted his voice and wept. 12 Jacob told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father.
13 So when Laban heard the news of Jacob his sister’s son, he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Then he related to Laban all these things. 14 Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him a month.
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful of form and face. 18 Now Jacob loved Rachel, so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than to give her to another man; stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel and they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time is completed, that I may go in to her.” 22 Laban gathered all the men of the place and made a feast. 23 Now in the evening he took his daughter Leah, and brought her to him; and Jacob went in to her. 24 Laban also gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah as a maid. 25 So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 But Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the firstborn. 27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you shall serve with me for another seven years.” 28 Jacob did so and completed her week, and he gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife. 29 Laban also gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maid. 30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and indeed he loved Rachel more than Leah, and he served with Laban for another seven years.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
Poetic justice? The deceiver was deceived. What Jacob did to disguise himself as his brother in order to steal the blessing was kind of what happened to him here. Still not right. Laban lied and didn't hold to the deal. In this way Laban married off both his daughters and got Jacob to serve him for 14 years (plus).
Now at this feast, I'm assuming there was probably a lot of alcohol involved. And since only men were invited, it was probably more of a bachelor party and less of a wedding celebration. FYI: originally, the bachelor party was meant as a test. The father and brothers of the bride took the groom out to party - to see if he would remain faithful. If the groom fell for any temptation/s in front of him, they knew he was not the man for the bride. In this case, this party was to prevent Jacob from thinking or seeing clearly.
Jacob wasn't thinking clearly anyway, as he allowed himself to be so smitten with "love" - or was it "lust" - for Rachel. He should have looked into the customs of that area before making a contract. And he should have looked into the face of his bride before making love. But he didn't, and therefore he took Leah as his wife. But, because he allowed himself to continue being so smitten with Rachel, he unwisely took two wives. As well, he fell into the bad behavior of his parents and showed obvious favoritism. This was not going to go well at all.
Like his brother Esau, he should have stopped at the first wife. He should have chosen to love Leah, focusing on her and working on that marriage. Who knows, it could have been a really lovely relationship! When both people decide and want to make a marriage work, and they both work on it, it will work! Hindsight - do not blindly rush into marriage!
Even when someone "gets the one" they really want to marry, it doesn't guarantee a good marriage, let alone a "happily ever after". FYI: just get rid of this saying! This is a worldly concept incorporated into fictional romance stories. It doesn't exist. Feelings are fickle. They come and go and then they can come back, etc.
Let me share a personal experience. Even as I got to know my fiancé whom I chose to love and marry, my feelings for him grew throughout the dating and engagement period. Although here and there, there were moments of frustration and exasperation, etc. which I sorted out. Otherwise, I knew he would make a great husband! Could "someone better" have come along? Sure. But it was clear that we shared the same direction in life, worked well together (etc.), and so we had chosen each other. Decision made! And overall - it felt good.
One day I promised myself that "that feeling" was never going to die. Well, after the honeymoon, I suddenly realized that "that feeling" was gone. BUT - it had been replaced with a feeling of contentment and peace... I couldn't figure this out, and instead of being concerned, I put this enigma to the backburner of my mind. Months later, I had been asked to sing a solo in church. Right before, I started to get quite nervous - and I suddenly realized - that this was "that feeling"!
"That feeling" is all about being nervous, which means that we would be wise to think through the reasons why we are having "that feeling". Whether you call it "the butterflies", or "chemistry"... it can be very easy to get these wires crossed, which would confuse our reasoning abilities. It can be as simple as wanting to make a good impression on someone (even with someone of the same sex). It can also be the feelings of being nervous, intimidated or afraid. Just because you 'have feelings" is NOT a sign that they were sent by God! In fact, this could very well be a test or a temptation! And this helps explain why certain people so very easily fall into abusive and/or inappropriate relationships, thinking that it is "love".
My mom had a few good words of advice: "Be careful who you date, because you will fall in love." And - "Never fight to START a relationship, you want to fight to KEEP a relationship." (That is - if you are already married!)
Obviously, I realized that I didn't want to be nervous about having to impress my husband! I embraced the feelings of contentment and peace... Again - feelings come and go. Even the feelings of contentment and peace! There will be those times when we feel our spouse is annoying or frustrating or... this is when we continue to choose love, and then with love, work on the relationship. Even once married, we should continue "dating" our spouse - as well as continue to think clearly. And if you are not married, if you are dating, always think clearly - think very clearly! And as with everything, seek God's wisdom and guidance!
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