Grains of Sand

Google Images Lies and deceit. That’s what Genesis 27 is about. The fact that the Bible records the shameful deception of an old man and the breakdown of a family, causes some people to believe that God gives at least tacit approval to bad behaviour. They fail to see the bottom line. The Bible acknowledges that men are sinful. It clearly shows the devastating consequences of those sins. It makes no attempt at a cover-up. At the same time, it speaks loudly about a God who takes even the sinful actions of men and works out His purposes despite those sins. In Genesis 27 we are told how Jacob, at the instigation of his mother, deceived Isaac and won the blessing that belonged to Jacob’s older brother, Esau. It’s not the first clue we have to just how dysfunctional this family was. In Genesis 25 we find parents who play favourites, and we discover how little Esau thought about his privileges as the eldest. He sold his rights as firstborn to Jacob for a bowl of stew—that was Jacob’s pric...

Prayer doesn't always change things. Take Zedekiah as a prime example. The King of Judah contacts Jeremiah and makes a logical request: " Please pray to the Lord our God for us " –Jeremiah 37:3, NIV. Great tactic particularly when threatened by enemies about to destroy your city and take you into captivity in a foreign country.  Small problem. Just prior to noting the request, the Scripture says of Zedekiah: " Neither he nor his attendants nor the people of the land paid any attention to the words the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet " –Jeremiah 37:2, NIV. I was instantly reminded of a man in Venezuela who asked us to pray for him. He was going through a difficult time financially and, as we discovered later, involved in a complicated interpersonal relationship challenge (i.e. cheating on his wife).  I confess I hesitated to pray for him because I doubted that my prayers would get much farther than the ceiling. Like Zedekiah, he wasn't ...