Jacob Worshiped God (Gen. 35:6-8)

04/20/2007

SPIRITUAL DIARY

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Jacob Worshipped God

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Genesis 35:6-8

            Message of the verses:  “6 ¶  So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him.  7  He built an altar there, and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed Himself to him when he fled from his brother.  8  Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried below Bethel under the oak; it was named Allon-bacuth.”

            God fulfills His promise to Jacob in bringing him back to Bethel, even though Jacob had to go through some hard times because of disobedience.  God will always fulfill the promises that He gives to believers, and I suppose non-believers too, as He has promised His wrath to fall on them and someday it will do just that.  It looks like the first thing that Jacob did was to build an altar there to worship the Lord and also to change the name to El-bethel, which means “the God of Bethel,” where Bethel meant “the house of God.” 

            The mention of Deborah’s death, who was Jacob’s mothers nurse is another thing that is covered in these verses.  Jacob never saw his mother after he left his home those many years before when he was fighting with Esau and it is not known when Deborah had come to live with Jacob, but it is a touching part of this story knowing that Jacob must have cared for her in this last part of her life.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Today is surely a day when I need a spiritual lesson, as it is the day when Sandra goes in to have a test, which will determine weather or not she has cancer in her right breast.  As stated before in an earlier SD, this has been a very strange and difficult week for us as many things have happened that normally do not happen.

            Going back to Bethel was for Jacob was going back to his roots in his walk with the Lord, and going back to Bethel was a promise that God had made to him that was now fulfilled.  I see a lot of revival in this chapter, as it seems that Jacob surely finds himself in a great need for revival, and this is true in my life, for it is not the things that God has lead me to do that cause me to walk closely with Him, but it is my day to day life in making an effort to keep in good fellowship with Him that make the things He is leading me to do that much more special.

The Word of God has been refreshing to my heart, in a time when I needed refreshment.

My Steps of Faith Today:  To stand on the promises of God and not to try and understand the circumstances that I find myself in at this time of my life.  To trust the Lord with all of my heart knowing that He is the only true God, and that He causes all things to work together for good for those who love Him and for those who are called for His purposes.