Genesis 32:9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, Lord, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’
Sometimes I wonder why I read the commentary I do each morning because I disagree with so many of the things this commentary says. Commentary indicates that what makes Jacob’s prayer so strong, among other things, is the fact that Jacob quotes God’s words, God’s promises back to Him. It seems to indicate that if you just pray enough of the Bible’s wording, you’ll get your way.
Genesis 32:10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.
That, to me, feels very legalistic. If I just pray enough of God’s words, if I just pray hard enough, long enough, if I just have enough people praying for me…, then I will get my way. That’s not how God works. He’s not in heaven making tally marks on a wall. “What a shame. If you had only had two more people praying for you, I would have given you what you wanted.” That’s not my God.
Genesis 32:11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children.
Precious Savior, Thank You that You know our hearts, that You aren’t legalistic, that You don’t have an arbitrary number or word in mind that if we only hit it, You’ll give us what we want. Thank You that You love us fiercely, that You know our hearts intimately, that You will never leave us nor forsake us–Never!–no matter what we face or how we react. Thank You. Amen.
Genesis 32:12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’”
Have a blessed day.