"Waiting for God"

            Waiting is simply part of the human condition.  While we usually don’t like to wait, waiting is part of life.  We wait for stoplights; we wait for doctor’s appointments; we wait for tables at restaurants; we wait in lines; we wait and wait.  Waiting is a part of life.  But, what about waiting for God?  Have you ever felt as though you were waiting for God?  Perhaps you have felt as though you were waiting on God to answer a prayer, which you had prayed again and again and again.

            This week we will learn about the life and faith of someone who spent a great deal of her life, waiting on God to answer her prayers.  This Sunday, July 30th, we continue our five-week exploration of “Woman of Faith in the Bible.”  During this study, we will explore the life and faith of five women from the Bible:  Miriam, Naomi, Ruth, Rachel, and Mary Magdalene.  Our focus this week is on Rachel.

            Rachel was born in the desert to a Jewish family of shepherds.  Her father was Laban, and her older sister was Leah.  One day, when she was a beautiful young woman, Rachel herded her family’s sheep down to a well because the sheep were thirsty in the hot, dusty desert and needed some water.  At the well that day, she met Jacob, who was her first cousin.  The tone of the Bible suggests that it was pretty much love at first sight for Rachel and Jacob.

            Jacob wanted to marry Rachel.  He offered to serve Laban, her father, as a shepherd and laborer, for seven years in order to marry Rachel.  Laban agreed to the arrangement.  So, Jacob and Rachel had to wait for seven long years before they could get married.  Jacob worked for seven long years for Laban, Rachel’s father.  At the end of the seven years’ service, Jacob asked for Rachel’s hand in marriage.  Laban agreed and a large wedding festival was prepared.  However, on the night of their wedding, Laban played a devious trick on Jacob and Rachel.  Here’s how the Bible describes what happened:

“So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah [instead of Rachel] and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. (Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) When morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, ‘What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?’  (Genesis 29:  22-25)

Once he has been exposed and condemned, Laban makes an excuse, appealing to a local custom in his area:  “Laban said, ‘This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the firstborn.’” (Genesis 29:26)

Ultimately, Laban agrees gives Jacob permission to marry both of his daughters, Leah and Rachel, but only if Jacob agrees to work an additional seven years as a servant to pay for Rachel.  Since Jacob deeply loves Rachel, he agrees to these terms and serves Laban for an additional seven years. 

            So, Rachel had to wait a long time before marrying her one true love, Jacob.

            In the ancient Middle Eastern culture of Jacob and Rachel, the most important gift which a married couple could receive was the birth of a son, a male heir.  Although Rachel and Jacob loved each other very much, they were childless for a long time.  Once again, Rachel found herself waiting and waiting.  I’m sure that Rachel prayed and prayed to God, asking God to help her get pregnant and have a son.  But, Rachel had to wait for God to answer her prayer.

            Meanwhile, Rachel’s older sister, Leah, who was also Jacob’s wife, was having baby boy after baby boy.  At one point, Rachel became very jealous of her sister, Leah.  So, Rachel followed an ancient custom, by giving her handmaiden, Bilhah, to Jacob so that could have a son with Bilhah—and, indirectly, with Rachel.  Ultimately, Leah had six sons before Rachel finally conceived.  Rachel finally did give birth to a son, Joseph.  Later, Rachel conceived and gave birth to a second son, Benjamin.  Unfortunately, Rachel died during childbirth with Benjamin.  Jacob buried the love of his life and built a great funeral monument to Rachel.  (See Genesis 29:1 – 35:20)

            I believe that contemporary Christians can learn a lot from Rachel about waiting on God.  We know that God has God’s own plans and timetable for our lives.  Yet, frequently, Christians are impatient with God.  We become frustrated when God does not respond according to our plans and on our timetable.  Yet, I believe that impatience with God may reveal an inner weakness in our faith as Christians.  Our unwillingness to wait until God’s time may well indicate inner doubts, which we may have concerning our faith.  Impatience may reveal our inability to accept how deeply God loves us, or to fully trust that God is capable of blessing us in God’s own good time. 

            Rachel’s story offers faithful Christians a model and a reminder that, always, we must trust in God to know what’s best for us and to trust that God will act in our own best interests in God’s good time.  In the Book of Isaiah, God reminds the Hebrew people:

            “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

If you live in the Lincoln, Nebraska area and do not have a place of worship, then I invite you to come and join us this Sunday, July 30th, as we reflect on the life and faith of Rachel and what her story can teach us about faithfully waiting for God.  Christ United Methodist Church is located at 4530 A Street in Lincoln, Nebraska.  Our two traditional Worship Services are at 8:30 and 11:00 on Sunday morning. 

Come and join us.  Everyone is welcome and accepted because God loves us all.