I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get into bed, exhausted, then toss and turn for hours before finally falling asleep. My brain just goes and goes. Thinking of all those things I didn’t finish that day, or topics I want to write about, or someone I was going to call and forgot. Nothing earth shattering, just a lot of little things rolling around in my brain so it won’t shut down.
Or maybe I fall asleep just fine, then the 3 a.m. wake up call comes. Maybe my body is so used to being woken up by the pounding of the police on my door at that time, but now it seems that waking up at 3 a.m. has become my new normal – and I don’t like it one bit. Because if you’re anything like me, once awake, you’re awake. As much as I tell myself to go back to sleep because my alarm is going off in two hours, forget it. All those things start going round and round like a merry-go-round and there is no chance of sleep.
I can either lay there thinking, or get up. Most times I just get up and start my day early. Or I should say I did. A few weeks ago as I was lying awake in the middle of the night, wanting to fall back to sleep for an hour or so, I was talking to Yahweh and asking Him to help me sleep. An idea popped into my mind to think through the Bible. I love the Bible. I love reading about the history of these people called the Israelites. The twelve tribes of Israel; twelve sons of one man, Jacob.
Thinking through that Book allows my brain relax and I drift off to sleep – usually. Last night as I lay there it wasn’t working. Probably too many chocolate chips cookies from yesterday – ha! My thoughts drifted to that man named Jacob. The man Yahweh used to be the father of His chosen people. A flawed man, a rash man, a man who made unwise decisions and who jumped in to make things happen faster because for some reason he thought Yahweh wasn’t going to make good on His promises. Impatient.
Hmmmmm…Maybe I like Jacob because he is so much like me. Thinking through the life of this man whom Yahweh used so greatly I see how many times he made mistakes, some of them life altering. How many times, instead of asking Yahweh what He wanted for him, Jacob just did what he thought Yahweh wanted. Human. Just like me. So much like me.
It gives me hope to have someone like Jacob in that amazing book. I’m grateful Yahweh didn’t fill this book with perfect people. Instead, He filled it with people just like you and me; people who make mistakes, who mess up, who dive in too fast without His okay, who think they know the right decision, but who really don’t. That’s me, flaw filled to the brim.
Jacob is just one person in this great book who messed up yet Yahweh was able to use that person and those mistakes to fulfill His purposes anyway. I love that. It gives me so much hope for the future.
This post is the beginning of a blog series on the life of Jacob. I’m going to go through the life of this man whom Yahweh used so much and pull out some lessons for us today, especially for those of us in the trenches of trauma, or for those of us going through tough times, well, for everyone, because most of us could use a little hope in our lives.
*************************************************************************
Stay tuned and be sure to follow my blog so you don’t miss out on anything.
Also, if you are an adoptive mom or dad be sure to get my book, Adoption Combat Zone for all your friends and family. They will learn more about what you deal with on a daily basis and be able to support you better! You are always in my thoughts and prayers!
Kathe
www.adoptioncombatzone.com
Follow me on Facebook and Instagram @adoptioncombatzone
www.katheray.arbonne.com