Real Housewives of the Bible: Waiting A Potential Trip to Self-Absorption Part II

Wow! Time sure flies. My last post was 2 1/2 weeks ago. Interestingly, the speed at which we feel time passing is so influenced by our age and by the trials we are going through. Rachel certainly must have felt like time was moving at a snails pace in her life! First she waited and waited to be married to the man she loved (seven years and then Leah stepped in her place). Next, she waited and waited to bear children as she watch Leah have baby after baby. My heart goes out to Rachel. When we are waiting time goes SO slow! When we are waiting, it is SO hard to trust God! When we are waiting, it is SO easy to become consumed with what is not happening. In those thoughts we can become self-absorbed and focus on how to get what we want, no matter the cost.

Rachel sadly got caught up in the waiting and started figuring out how to do things her way, rather than God's way. I don't want to minimize the pain of what she had experienced. She had been in love with Jacob and waiting to marry the man of her dreams and at the last minute her dad pulled out his power card. Maybe he had started off with pure intentions, hoping that during Jacob's seven years of working for him he could find a spouse for Leah. But, seven years later, Leah still wasn't spoken for.

Can you imagine what it must have been like for Leah. The oldest sister is suppose to get married first, yet her younger sister was spoken for and she wasn't. I wonder how often Rachel's beauty "trumped" Leah's desires and needs. I wonder how she felt about being a part of deceiving Jacob at the wedding. Did she feel justified and happy that she was getting what Rachel wanted? Did she feel used and forced to do something she didn't want to do?

Both Rachel and Leah had different "triggers" that made us vulnerable to being selfish. What are the triggers that make you potentially selfish? Is waiting on God's timing hard for you? Do you get frustrated at the way He does it? Do you feel like He is ignoring you and you need to step in and do something to start making things happen. Or, is your trigger feeling like others are always getting what you want? Do you feel like someone else is getting what you want? Does this lead you to actions that involve deception to get what you want? When things go your way do you say "I told you so" and gloat over the other?

We all have vulnerabilities to selfishness and it is important to know what they are so we don't deceive ourselves. Join us next time as we see how Rachel and Leah interact in their competition for sons and Jacob.