Loyalty Pains

When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he enabled her to have children. – Genesis 29:31

Loyalty. It hurts when someone leaves, breaks up, or cheats on you. It hurts beyond words. Misery loves company, and that’s why God asks us to get connected. We’re here to encourage one another. Take long walks. Talk and share. Pray together and point each other back to God – even when He is silent.

Leah is the best biblical example of this. She was not loved. Nor was she the favorite wife of Jacob. After Leah’s father tricked Jacob into marrying her, Jacob spent seven years working for the hand of her younger sister, Rachel. Ouch. Talk about a loyal pain. But the Lord noticed her misery. As Ann Spangler and Jean Syswerda put it, “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Leah’s husband) looked down and saw a woman who was lonely and sad because her husband loved his other wife better than he loved her. So, to ease her sorrow, to provide her comfort, God gave her children – beautiful, upright, strong children, one of whom would found the lineage of the priests of Israel and another who was an ancestor of Jesus Himself.”

I know some of you – myself included – have experience deep sorrow from a painful breakup. From someone breaking his or her commitment. Maybe you’re the one who broke it. You never know how God’s going to redeem your love story. He’s still writing the pages as we speak. Learn to trust Him and put your hand in His. He’ll lead you down the path of righteousness. Next time you’re tempted to believe you’re the only one with heartache in relationships, take heart and think again. Since the time of Genesis God has been making and remaking His covenant to His people. Unlike your ex, “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” (Numbers 23:19). No. Say it again: No! No loyalty pains or broken commitments can separate you from God’s love.

Prayer: I am convinced that neither death nor life, angels nor demons, fears from the past nor present worries can separate us from you. Be our shield in times of distress. Come to our aid and rescue us in our brokenness. Amen.