Life on E Street

Last week, our focus was El Shadday, God Almighty. God gave himself this name in Genesis 17:1, where he told Abraham, “I am El Shaddai. Live in my presence with integrity.” This name is associated with our covenantal God, as he called himself that before giving Abraham the promise that he would make him the “father of many nations.”

Why do you think that God linked this particular name to covenants and promises?

What does the name El Shaddai mean to you? How have you seen him work in your life?

El Shaddai’s literal translation is “the Mountain One”. We talked last week about what we thought of when we saw a mountain. How did El Shaddai reveal himself to you this week? Did anyone have a “mountain” moment?

When we pray using the name El Shaddai, we pray to invoke his power, his promise, and his blessing. Did you use his name in prayer this week? How did it make you feel?

We have a personal situation going on that I prayed for his blessing upon, and I got a definitive answer.

In the deeper study section, we were asked to consider the name El Shaddai and how it relates to the context of passages.

Who is El Shaddai in Genesis 28:3?

Ruth 1:20-22

Job 6:1-4, 13-14

Who looked up the story of Balaam (Numbers 22-24)? What did you think?

This week we will be studying the name El Olam. The everlasting God or the Eternal One. Where El Shaddai meets us in our waiting, El Olam will give us hope.

Our key scripture is Genesis 21:32-33

“After they made the treaty in Beersheba, Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, left and went back to the land of the Philistines. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba and worshipped Yahweh, El Olam, there.”

A little context as to what is going on here. If we back up to Genesis 20, we will see that Abraham and Sarah are new to the town of Gerar. Abraham was pulling the same stunt he did in Genesis 12 when they were in Egypt, and he introduced her as his sister. Which, technically, she was; she was his half-sister. 

King Abimelech sent for her and had her brought to his palace in an effort to make her his new wife. 

The name Abimelech is a title, like Pharaoh, for king or ruler. Phicol (fi-coal) was a name used for a commander, like a general.

According to Genesis 20:3, God spoke to Abimelech in a dream. This tells us that Abimelech was a God-fearing man. God had told him that he was a dead man because Sarah was already married. Abimelech said whoa! I haven’t touched her, and I was told she was his sister. I didn’t know. I’m innocent. God said, yes, that is why I am coming to you so that you stay that way. Return her to her husband, and he will pray for you, and if you don’t, then you will surely die.

Early the next morning, Abimelech gathered his people and told them what happened. He summoned Abraham and said, why did you do this? What have I done to you to possess you to do such a thing?

Abraham said, in my defense, I thought this was a godless place, and “technically,” she is my sister. Insert shoulder shrug.

Abimelech gave him cattle, male and female servants, and gave him back his wife, Sarah, and 1,000 pieces of silver, and said, choose where you want to live. I am settling any claims against me, and your reputation is clear.

Abraham prayed, Abimelech was spared certain death, and the women of his home were blessed to be able to have children. Since this was mentioned, this tells us that Sarah was living in the house long enough for the women to realize that they weren’t getting pregnant.

Then we move to chapter 21, where we are now seeing the covenant of God that was made in chapter 17 starts to come to fruition. Isaac is born. 

In verse 22, Abimelech and Phicol come to visit Abraham. At least five years have passed at this point since Abraham first came to settle in Gerar. Abimelech sees that God is blessing Abraham and asks him to “swear that you will never deceive me, my children, or descendants.” 

Abraham swears and then lodges a complaint against some of Abimelech’s servants who have taken a well from Abraham’s servants by force. Abimelech says he doesn’t know anything about it. Abraham gathers some animals to give to Abimelech, and they make a treaty. Then Abraham gathered seven lambs and gave them to Abimelech to show the agreement that Abraham dug a well, which he named Beersheba (well of the oath).

After they left, Abraham planted a tree, and there he worshiped the LORD, the Eternal God- El Olam.

Now that we know a little more context on this verse lets talk about the name. El Olam.

El Olam is used four times in scripture and means everlasting God and is applied to his laws, promises, covenant, and kingdom.

What do you think of when you think of everlasting? 

God has no beginning and no end. That is something that is hard for our human minds to comprehend because we have a beginning and an end. 

John 1 says, “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Deuteronomy 33:27 says, “The eternal God is your refuge, and his everlasting arms are under you.”

Jeremiah 10:10 says, “But the LORD is the only true God. He is the living God and the everlasting King!”

In Isaiah 9, when he prophesied of the coming Christ, he said his name will be called, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father (EL Olam), and Prince of Peace.

El Olam is our constant. He is always there, always was, and always will be. He is our hope when things look bleak. He is with us on our mountain top and in our valleys. 

As we go into this week, let’s think about how El Olam’s eternal nature relates to his promises. 

Where have you seen the hope of El Olam in your life already?

Is there something in your life now that you need to surrender to our everlasting Father?

Have a great day with Jesus!

Sunday, I mentioned that El Shadday was the blessing of Balaam. Have you ever read the story of Balaam in the book of Numbers?

It’s an interesting story about Balak, King of Moab, and Balaam a diviner. It would be a lot to type out as it spans 3 chapters(22-24), but the gist is this. The Israelites moved to town, and Balak, the king of Moab, was scared of their size, so he summoned Balaam, the diviner, to come and curse them.

Balaam said he could only do what God told him to do. Then there’s this part about Balaam beating his donkey and his donkey TALKING to him. (Don’t read it in the KJV to your kids unless you want a giggle.)

Balak begged Balaam to curse them, and Balaam offered sacrifices to God three times, and each time God told Balaam to bless the Israelites, not curse them. Balak got mad and said, I summoned you to curse them, and you bless them!”

Balaam said, “I told you from the beginning that I can only do what God tells me to do!

(Ok, so that is my paraphrase, but I can totally see Balaam throwing snaps as he said, “I TOLD YOU!”)

Balaam was a diviner or a sorcerer. Not someone we would consider to have a direct connection to God, or someone whom we would even think that he would use. I truly hope that the misconception that we need to be perfect to be used as his vessel has been squashed in your mind.

In Balaam’s final message, he says,

“This is the message of Balaam, son of Beor,

The message of the man whose eyes see clearly,

the message of one who hears the words of God,

who has knowledge from the Most High,

who sees a vision from the Almighty (Shadday),

who bows down with eyes wide open;

I see him, but not here and now.

I perceive him, but far in the distant future.

A star will rise from Jacob.

A scepter will emerge from Israel.”

God used Balaam to foretell the coming of Christ, and God used Balaam to bless his people when an earthly king wanted them cursed.

Balaam knew that he could not speak out of turn against God. While his eagerness or greediness initially had his donkey talking to him, he found that if he relied on God, then he could be a blessing.

El Shadday is our sustainer, our almighty, our immovable mountain, and our greatest blessing. As you move into the weekend, I hope you take solace in knowing that Shadday is with you, even when things seem out of control. Even when you feel you are being cursed, God is still blessing you.

Have a great day with Jesus!

My toes got stepped on this morning.

I am doing the Bible Recap reading plan on the Bible app, and I have read ahead. Not on purpose, but some mornings I just get caught up in the word and keep going, and then I have read 3 days ahead and not realized it. Well, here I am reading the first of Exodus. We have met Moses; he’s grown, and God is telling him that he needs to go head-to-head with Pharaoh and demand that he let his people go.

That would be scary for anyone, but Moses “is a poor speaker”; perhaps he stutters or has a lisp. Either way, it is enough to shake his confidence to the point that he tells God that he can’t do what God has asked him to do.

I mean, I get it. He doesn’t feel qualified. He lacks eloquent speech. He lacks confidence. I am all of these things. But he is telling God this. God. The creator of the universe. His Elohim, El Roi, El Shadday, YAHWEH!

And this is where my toes got hurt. In the daily wind-up, the facilitator and writer says that Moses’s fears and insecurities are an attack on God’s character.

Remember when we talked about the creative talents that God gave us?  We all have different talents, and we all use them differently. God gave you these talents and these abilities, and he gave them to you so that you can glorify him with them.

So when we question God about our ability to use WHAT HE GAVE US, we are questioning El Shadday about his sufficiency. His ability to sustain and support us. We are questioning whether he knew what he was doing when he poured that ability into us.

Y’all. I’m gonna have to sit with that today.

I had a friend tell me I needed to do something, and I laughed. I then asked my mom, and she agreed with my friend. So I asked 2 more friends and my husband. And they all agreed with my friend that I should do it. So I added it to my prayer list, and my husband and I pray about it every night. And no, I’m not going to tell you what it is yet because I’m still not accepting it. lol

But what right do I have to question the gift that God gave me? How can I not use it to gloirfy Him? How can I not do what He is calling me to do? If I question him, am I not questioning his very character? Am I not trusting that he would supply me with every need?

My question to you is this, and please comment below because I want to know if your toes hurt too. What gift has God given you that you aren’t using, or are you wrestling with God on how he has asked you to use it? Do you trust him to be sufficient?

I’m off to find some steel-toed shoes. Y’all have a great day with Jesus!

In the opening of Genesis 17, we are introduced to the name El Shadday, and he tells Abram, “I am El Shadday. Live in my presence with integrity.” God goes on to tell Abram of his promise to make him the father of many nations and then to change his and Sarai’s names to Abraham and Sarah.

In verse 17, we see where Abraham bowed his face to the ground and laughed and thought, “Can a son be born to a hundred-year-old man and a ninety-year-old woman?” Then Abraham asked Elohim, “Why not let Ishmael be my heir?”

Elohim said, “No, your heir will come through Sarah, and you will name him Isaac” (He laughs).”

God had a plan. And there was nothing that was going to thwart His plan.

El Shadday is God Almighty, our covenant maker and keeper.

There are times when we get anxious and impatient, so we don’t wait on God’s timing. We want to rush the process, or we don’t trust that God is going to see it through as He told us he would.

Oddly enough, one of the hardest verses for Christians to believe is not the birth to a virgin or even the resurrection of Christ. It is the promise found in 1 Corinthians 10:13. This verse is one of the most misinterpreted verses that I have heard. It says, “There isn’t any temptation that you have experienced which is unusual for humans. God, who faithfully keeps his promises, will not allow you to be tempted beyond your power to resist. But when you are tempted, he will also give you the ability to endure the temptation as your way of escape.”

(What is normally said is, “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” That is not what that verse says. Read it again.)

God will not allow you to be tempted beyond your power to resist. So that bar of chocolate calling your name as a late-night snack… tell it it has the wrong number.

Back to God’s plan. I had an ah-ha moment in the early hours this morning. I excitedly shared Christ’s lineage yesterday and how Luke traced it back to Abraham. In that lineage, we see the name Perez, son of Judah. (Luke 3:33).

Go back to Genesis 49:8-12.

Read Jacob’s (Israel) blessing to his son Judah. Does this sound like someone you know? Perhaps the Lion of Judah?

Now go further back to Genesis 38 and read the whole chapter.

As you can read, Judah slept with his daughter-in-law. His first two sons, God was not pleased with, and took their lives. Now, as per the custom, if a son dies, the next son takes the now-widowed sister-in-law as his wife. Since Judah’s 3rd son was too young, he told Tamar to go back to her family until he was grown. But Judah assumed that Tamar was the reason that his first two sons died, so he didn’t tell her when his third son was ready. She caught on, tricked Judah, slept with him, and got pregnant with twins. Perez was one of those twins.

(What a tangled web we weave when we practice to conceive.)

Luke 3:33, the lineage of Christ, Perez, son of Judah.

I share this to point out that the lineage of Christ is full of impatient people who try to take matters into their own hands and attempt to do things their own way.

Let this bring you comfort that no matter how badly you mess up, you are not going to mess up El Shadday’s plan for you as long as you continue to seek him.

Ask El Shadday to instill in you the faith to believe in his promises and give you the patience to wait on him until the time is right.

Have a great day with Jesus!

If you haven’t done this week’s assignment, then you may want to come back to this, as I am about to share my thoughts on the first two questions. This is where God spoke to me today, and I felt I needed to share.

(Side note, I am not super smart. I spend a lot of time googling, looking in my Bible history books, concordances, and commentaries, or picking the brains of a couple of the really super smart Bible men in my life to compile what I bring to you all. So please don’t think I am some sort of Bible wiz. )

We are first introduced to the name El Shadday (or El Shaddai) in Genesis 17:1-2

“When Abram was 99 years old, Yahweh appeared to him. He said to Abram, “I am El Shadday. Live in my presence with integrity. I will give you my promise, and I will give you very many descendants.”

The first question we were asked this week was why we thought this name was linked to the covenant he made with Abraham.

If you haven’t come up with your answer yet, I’ll wait.

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Ok, so let’s see if you made the same connection I did today.

Jump over to Luke chapter 3 and start in verse 23.

(Now, I grew up with an old NKJV in my hand, so we would call this the “begats.” But bear with me. Read the list or just the names in the list really quickly.)

Did you see it?

We start with Jesus and then go backwards in his family tree. We go through a lot of names that I don’t totally recognize, then we see David, Boaz, Judah, Jacob, Isaac, and…….Abraham! You can keep going all the way back to Adam, but for today and this lesson, we are focusing on Abraham.

El Shadday, God Almighty, made a covenant with Abraham. That he would be the father of many nations. Only ONE GOD can make that kind of covenant.

I will give you many descendants.

Many nations and KINGS will come from you.

I will be your God and the God of your descendants.

If you read further in Genesis 17, you will see where God said that he will confirm the covenant through Abraham’s not-yet-born son, Isaac. (vs19).

El Shadday made a covenant with Abraham that his lineage would be the lineage of Jesus, Yeshua, our Yahweh!

So why do you think God linked this particular name to the covenant that he made with Abraham and his descendants?

Because God knew we needed a Savior. God’s plan for Jesus was ALREADY in place! Jesus wasn’t the plan B, he wasn’t even plan A. He was THE plan from the beginning.

Not only did he make a covenant with him, but he also changed his name and Sarai’s name. They are no longer called Abram [Exalted Father] but Abraham [Father of Many] and Sarai [my princess] but Sarah [Princess]. She was no longer just the princess of her house but the Princess.

Their new names came with the reminder that God made a covenant with them. They were to be the beginning of a great family history.

How would you have responded? Honestly, I may have required a change of clothing at the mere appearance of El Shadday. But to know that He considered me for such a covenant would be humbling, to say the least.

I hope you meet El Shadday today as you read, and you have a glimpse of his Might and Power.

Come back later and tell me, where did you see El Shadday today?

Have a great day with Jesus!

So far in our journey, we have learned about Elohim and El Roi. In Scripture, names aren’t just titles; they reveal God’s character, his posture towards humanity, and how he meets us in specific seasons. 

What does Elohim mean?

And El Roi?

Last week, we focused on the name El Roi, the God who sees me. I presented you with some questions to consider when thinking about the name El Roi. 

• Is there a time in your life when you felt “unseen”?
• What part of you do you need El Roi to see right now?
• How does it make you feel knowing that God sees you, the past, present, and future you?

Where did you see El Roi, or how were you seen by El Roi this week?

What images come to mind when you hear the name El Roi?

We saw this week how Sarai took things into her own hands and offered up Hagar, then we saw the hurt that occurred between Hagar and Sarai, and then how Hagar ran away. 

Hagar is:

• Used
• Displaced
• Pregnant
• Alone

Yet she names God.

The first person in scripture to name God is not a patriarch, but a runaway slave woman.

Things tend to fall apart when we try to speed up God’s timeline.

How have you seen God’s mercy emerge from your own misguided attempts to be in charge?

How have you experienced El Roi’s watchful care?

At the end of the study, a few verses were listed, and we were asked to consider how they relate to the meaning of El Roi. Would anyone care to share how they saw El Roi in these passages?

El Roi is “God sees us.” This week we will be studying how the one who sees us is also the one who can act.

It’s one thing to be seen; it’s another to be sustained.

This week, we will be studying El Shadday, which means God Almighty. Its literal translation is “God, the Mountain One.” 

What do you think of when you think of a mountain?

• Stability
• Permanence
• Refuge
• Smallness of self

Our God is a god of stability, permanence, and refuge.

El Shadday is mentioned in scripture 48 times. Six times in Genesis, once in Exodus, twice in Numbers, twice in Ruth, twice in Psalms, once in Isaiah, and the remainder in Job.

“Shadday” in English means “Almighty,” which establishes him as an all-powerful, sufficient, and sovereign God. This title suggests that God can keep his promises, establish his purpose, protect his people, and supply all our needs.

We are first introduced to the name El Shadday in Genesis 17:1-2: “When Abram was 99 years old, Yahweh appeared to him. He said to Abram, “I am El Shaddai. Live in my presence with integrity. I will give you my promise, and I will give you many descendants.”

What stands out to you about Abram’s age?

What does El Shaddai ask of Abram before his promise?

God is asking Abram to walk with integrity before he receives his inheritance.

El Shadday is the name that God gave himself. His name reveals that he is not only the creator of the universe but the one who maintains it. When God tells Abram who he is, he says, “I give you a promise” or “ I will make a covenant with you.” 

Our God, our El Shaddai, is the only one who can make a promise or covenant with his people. There is no other god that can do that.

I once read that “humans make contracts; God makes covenants.” 

A contract is based on performance. A contract is based on character.

In Genesis, El Shadday is the covenant maker; in Exodus, he is the assurance of Moses; and in Numbers, he is the blessing of Balaam. In Ruth, he is Naomi’s devotion; in Job, he is wisdom and divine transcendence; in Psalms, he is the shelter; and in Isaiah, he is prophecy. He is omnipotent, our covenant, a disciplinarian, and universally sovereign. 

How can we not worship at the feet of El Shaddai?

Based on your knowledge of scripture, how do you see El Shaddai in Psalms, Ruth, and Exodus?

Where have you seen El Shadday already in your life?

Where do you need God not just to see but to be sufficient?

Where have you been trying to carry what only El Shaddai can hold?

When we pray using the name of El Shadday, we invoke his power, his promise, and his blessing.

El Roi sees us in our wandering; El Shaddai meets us in our waiting.

The God who sees us is the same God who keeps us.

Have a great day with Jesus!

I had something planned to post today, but God just changed that through my daily worship devotional. So instead, I am going to share the link below for you to enjoy as well. (To subscribe to the devotional text “Sing” to 79316. You will get a free daily (weekday) singing devotional sent to you.)

The speaker shared several scriptures on sight/seeing/vision that just sum up this week beautifully. She runs through them quickly, so I will share them so you can make notes of them and study later. I am going to share them in the Names of God, God’s Word Translation.

God gives us physical sight:

Exodus 4:11 “Yahweh asked him, ‘Who gave humans their mouths? Who makes humans unable to talk or hear? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? It is I, Yahweh!”

Proverbs 20:12 “The ear that hears, the eyes that see—Yahweh made them both.”

Matthew 11:5 “Blind people see again, lame people are walking, those with skin diseases are made clean, deaf people hear again, dead people are brought back to life, and poor people hear the Good News.”

Mark 8:22-25 “As they came to Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to Yeshua. They begged Yeshua to touch him. Yeshua took the blind man’s hand and led him out of the village. He spit into the man’s eyes and placed his hand on him. Yeshua asked him, ‘Can you see anything?’ The man looked up and said, “I see people. They look like trees walking around.” Then Yeshua placed his hands on the man’s eyes a second time, and the man saw clearly. His sight was normal again. He could see everything clearly, even at a distance.”

God gives us spiritual sight:

Acts 9:17-18 “Ananias left and entered Judas’ house. After he placed his hand on Saul, Ananias said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Yeshua, who appeared to you on your way to Damascus, sent me to you. He wants you to see again and to be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like fish scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. Then Saul stood up and was baptized.”

Acts 26:15-18 “I asked, ‘Who are you, sir?’ The Lord answered, “I am Yeshua, the one you’re persecuting. Stand up! I have appeared to you for a reason. I’m appointing you to be a servant and witness of what you have seen and of what I will show you. I will rescue you from the Jewish people and from the non-Jewish people to whom I am sending you. You will open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from Satan’s control to God’s. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and a share among God’s people who are made holy by believing in me.”

Hebrews 11:27 “Faith led Moses to leave Egypt without being afraid of the king’s anger. Moses didn’t give up but continued as if he could actually see the invisible God.”

Psalm 119:18 “Uncover my eyes so that I may see the miraculous things in your teachings.”

Our sight is a tool that leads us to God:

Psalm 63:2 “So I look for you in the holy place to see your power and your glory.”

Luke 11:34 “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is unclouded, your whole body is full of light. But when your eye is evil, your body is full of darkness.”

2 Corinthians 4:18 “We don’t look for things that can be seen but for things that can’t be seen. Things that can be seen are only temporary. But things that can’t be seen last forever.”

Psalm 27:4 “I have asked one thing from Yahweh. This I will seek: to remain in Yahweh’s house all the days of my life in order to gaze at Yahweh’s beauty and to search for an answer in his temple.”

Our faith will be made sight:

Revelation 1:7 “Look! He is coming in the clouds. Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. Every tribe on earth will mourn because of him. This is true. Amen.”

1 Corinthians 13:12 “Now we see a blurred image in a mirror. Then we will see very clearly. Now my knowledge is incomplete. Then I will have complete knowledge, as God has complete knowledge of me.”

God sees you:

Genesis 16:13 “Hagar named Yahweh, who had been speaking to her, ‘You are El Roi.'” She said, “This is the place where I watched the One who watches over me.”

My prayer is that you have been blessed this week, knowing that El Roi sees you and has given you the ability to see him.

Have a great day with Jesus!

I have been thinking and praying all day about what I could share about the name El Roi and how God sees us. Today has been one of those days where I just didn’t want to do anything. I didn’t sleep well last night, and honestly, I just wanted to sit and watch Hallmark and call it a day.

But as I was reading this evening and praying for guidance from God, I was reminded of an unnamed woman in scripture. In John 8, we are told the story of a woman who was caught in adultery. It is believed that this was actually a trap that the Pharisees had set up in order not to condemn the woman but ultimately trap Jesus.

They drag the woman out and make their claims before Jesus and ask him what they should do. Jesus simply bent down and started writing in the sand.  When they persisted in their questioning and demanded that Jesus condemn the woman, Jesus stood up and said, “The person who is sinless should cast the first stone.”

I often wonder if Jesus was writing their sins in the sand for them to see.

One by one, they left without casting the first stone against the woman.

When they all left, Jesus asked the woman, “Where are your accusers?”

“They left,” she said.

Then the one who WAS sinless said, “I don’t condemn you either. Go and sin no more!”

If ever there was a moment where someone was seen, it was this one. She was caught in the act. Perhaps she was naked or barely clothed. Displayed for all to see. She was seen by her peers in an accusatory way. However, by the one who truly SAW her, the woman she is, not the sin she was caught in, he did not look on her with condemnation, but with grace, love, and forgiveness.

Be comforted in knowing that when God sees our inner thoughts, our hidden sins, and the dark places that we would rather Him not see, He doesn’t look at us with judgment. He looks at us with love. He grants us forgiveness through His son.

Rest in knowing that the one who sees us and knows us loves us just the way we are.

I hope you had a great day with Jesus!

Today, I am going to jump forward a little to Abraham and Sarah’s grandson. Isaac had a set of twins, Jacob and Esau. When Jacob went to find a wife, he fell in love with Rachel. But Rachel had an older sister, and when it was time to marry her, her father brought Leah, the older sister, to the marriage tent, and Jacob woke up the next morning realizing that he had Leah, not Rachel. It’s an interesting story in Genesis 28-29.

Leah was described as not being that attractive. Scripture says her eyes had no sparkle or were weak. So I guess that would be today’s equivalent of “she has a great personality”!

She was not sought after, pursued, or even “wanted” by men, unlike Rachel, who was beautiful in figure and features. But their father said it was their custom for the older sister to marry before the younger. (I feel like this was his way of getting Leah married off so she would have someone to take care of her.)

I imagine Leah’s self-esteem is pretty low. And as someone who has struggled with that her whole life, I think I have a good idea of what was going through her head.

Because Jacob wanted Rachel, Rachel was loved. Leah was not. Which brings me to what I wanted to share today. Genesis 29:31 says, “When the LORD SAW that Leah was unloved, he enabled her to have children, but Rachel could not conceive.”

Here is El Roi. He SAW her. We are about to follow Leah’s journey of realization through what she names her four sons.

• Reuben – who sees the son or “seen”
  vs. 32 “The LORD has noticed my misery, and now my husband will love me.”
• Simeon – that hears obeys, or has heard
  vs. 33 “The LORD heard that I was unloved and has given me another son
• Levi – who is held and associated/attached
  vs. 34 “Surely this time my husband will feel affection for me, since I have given him three sons!”
• Judah – the praise of the LORD
  vs. 35 “Now I will praise the LORD!”

If we look at the meanings of the names, we see that Leah moves from being seen, heard, and held, to then, praise. Her feelings move from looking for the attention of a man to praising the One who saw her to begin with.

Once we stop seeking the attention and acceptance of others to realizing that we already have One who SEES us and loves us, our attitude moves from striving to resting, from longing to gratitude, and from pain to praise.

Leah didn’t suddenly become loved by Jacob. Her circumstances didn’t immediately change. But she changed. By the time Judah is born, her focus shifts. She no longer names her son based on what she hopes a man will finally give her. Instead, she names him out of what God has already done.

“Now I will praise the LORD.”

There is freedom in that moment. Freedom from needing to be chosen. Freedom from proving worth. Freedom from tying our value to how others treat us. Leah teaches us that being seen by God is enough. El Roi was never waiting for her to become more desirable; He saw her exactly where she was, in her loneliness and rejection, and He met her there.

And maybe that’s the invitation for us today: to stop naming our lives after what we lack and start naming them after who God is. Because when we truly grasp that we are seen, heard, and known by Him, praise becomes our natural response.

Have a great day with Jesus!

Yesterday, I spoke about Sarai and how she may have been feeling during this whole ordeal. Today I want to turn back to Hagar. After Hagar ran away, we see that the Messenger of Yahweh, the angel of the LORD, appeared to her.

I want to pause and draw your attention to something. This isn’t just any ol’ angel.  This is Jesus before birth. This is the Son of God appearing to Hagar.

How do we know this? Look at Genesis 16:10, he says, “I will give you many descendants.” “I WILL.” No ordinary messenger could make that promise because any ordinary angel would have known nor made a promise of what God can do. This is Jesus.

Back to Hagar. The angel of the LORD found her sitting beside a spring of water. Hagar stopped running. Maybe it was to rest, maybe it was to question her choices, perhaps she was struggling with her decision to run, or maybe she was considering the actions that got her to this point. Nevertheless, she stopped.

This is where Jesus found her.

I haven’t told many people this because, honestly, I’m still trying to make sense of it. Right after the first of the year, I awoke one morning with a voice in my head telling me that “your word for the year is ‘BE.'” I obviously had not had my coffee; I wasn’t even out of bed yet, so I shook my head and told myself that it made no sense and proceeded to respond to the middle-aged urgency of bladder control.

The voice said it again. “Your word for the year is ‘BE’!”

Now I am truly thinking I am losing my mind because it doesn’t make sense. I tell myself to go get coffee, and then maybe I might know what is going on.

But the voice….

Louder this time, “YOUR WORD FOR THE YEAR IS BE!”

(Yes, I understand the insanity of all this, but here we are.)

I do believe it was God. He was telling me to focus on this ‘BE’.  Now I haven’t had a “word for the year” since before SarahBeth was born. I thought about it, but kids, life’s little blessings of distraction, have kept me from choosing a word. Instead, I have focused on surviving the days.

At this point, I am questioning the voice. Be? Be what? It doesn’t make sense. “Be” is a verb.  I feel like it needs a follow-up word to tell me what to “be.”

Later, I relay the story to Braxton, and he questions the way I questioned. Then he said, Maybe that is what God wants you to do. Spend the year finding out how to “be” and what God is trying to tell you.

I tell you this to reflect back on Hagar. She was “being” still. She had stopped running and was resting. She was taking a moment to “be” accessible to God.

Are there areas of your life that you are running from God that you are trying to hide from him? El Roi sees all of you, so you know there is no sense in trying to hide them from him.

Maybe you think that if you stay busy enough, you will be good enough to be seen. Maybe you struggle with past circumstances that make you question your worth. (I know I do.)

My challenge today is to take a moment, a breath, to “be” in the presence of God. Lock the door to the bathroom so the children can’t come in (even if they stand at the door and scream and kick—that’s just proof of life), or bundle up and step into Elohim’s creation, take a deep breath, lift your head to El Roi, and just “be” seen for a moment.

Lay your heart out before him and let him in. Uncover the dark areas and know that He sees you just the way you are, and He adores you.

I hope you have a great day with Jesus!