Genesis 30:22-24, “Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, “God has taken away my disgrace.” She named him Joseph, and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”
When things seem difficult and impossible, is it hard for you to trust in God when relief does not occur? All you see is a fog and not a clear answer to your burden. When you need a Red Sea parting of the waters to walk on dry land, to be rescued, or to be able to walk on water despite disruptive circumstances miracle relief, which is from your perspective. When you have done your best at analyzing data, researching options, and weighing the risks, and the pressures do not let up, what often happens? An emotional upheaval usually erodes, and feelings of failure and defeat set in, no doubt, as the result of someone else’s or oneself exploding from burnout. You have prayed, but relief cannot be seen. Usually, lack of rest or sleep precedes, and often, our health is affected and threatened. I have been there, have you? It goes back to the fact that the error of truth’s weapons are guilt, shame, frustration, and failure to step in, so he steals, kills, and destroys one’s peace, joy, hope, and trust in the power of truth, the LORD God almighty. The great I AM.
Rachel had to live with the consequences of taking things into her own hands when she lost patience with God not answering her prayers for children. Her jealousy and envy of her sister, Leah, caused her to make a significant mistake. She failed to see that Jacob’s devotion and loyalty to her never stopped. Out of her own desperation, she created a plan that changed the course of history, based on emotions rather than persevering and waiting on God to provide her need of giving Jacob a son.
When you have prayed and prayed and don’t see the answer forthcoming, trust in God. Hold on a little longer. Self-control calms rage. Remember who God is and who you are. Take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). You are an anointed child of God.
- 1 John 2:20, “But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.”
- 2 Corinthians 2:21-22, “And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”
- John 16:13, “When the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”
God created you and has a purpose in life that only you can fulfill. We must place our hope in the future God has for us – a future that we can’t see just yet. We must take it one day at a time. Ask Him to help you have the faith to trust Him alone in all things and not in other people. God will deliver you and straighten out any areas where you have failed. Ask Him to astound you (Mark 6:51). So, trust in God, even when you cannot see the end.
Eventually, God did answer Rachel’s prayer, but she had to live with the consequences of taking things into her own hands and wanting her own way in her demands. It is recorded that the last word Rachel said before she died was “sorrow” (Genesis 35:18). Dear one, God has not forgotten you. Memorize Zephaniah 3:17, “The LORD your God is in your midst; a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love, He will exult over you with loud singing.” Trust Him.
Listen to Matthew West – Don’t Stop Praying (Lyric Video).